The Yobe Government gave tractors for free to some farmers and farmers’ groups as part of its Agriculture Empowerment Programme.
Hajiya Aishatu Tijjani, who speaks for the Yobe State Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, shared this news in Damaturu.
She said that some groups getting the Massey Ferguson 375 tractors include the state branch of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), AMFAZAT Farms, FA’IZA Farms, and RAISA Farms.
She also said the ministry will sell bags of NPK fertilizer to farmers at half price. This was approved by the state governor, Mai Mala Buni.
Tijjani said letters giving the fertilizer to some farmers were handed out. One group, the Retired Permanent Secretaries Forum, will get 600 bags.
She asked the farmers to use the tractors and fertilizer wisely to grow more crops and improve their lives.
Alhaji Usman Ngari, the chairman of AFAN in Yobe, said the association got one tractor from the ministry.
He said the farmers will decide the best way to use the tractor before the next farming season starts.
Ngari also said many farmers in the state got free hand tools like ploughs, tillers, threshers, sprayers, planters, and irrigation pumps from the programme.
He confirmed that all the farmers who got help were chosen by committees from 17 local areas, with AFAN members involved in the selection.
Ngari said the ministry sold NPK fertilizer to farmers for 25,000 naira per bag, which is cheaper than usual.
He talked about how grain prices dropped in the state. For example, last year, a bag of sorghum cost 100,000 naira, but now it costs about 26,000 naira.
Ngari said this price drop is good, but the government should also work to lower prices of other food so grain prices don’t rise again.
