Stakeholders in the agricultural space have lauded the move by President Bola Tinubu to reintroduce commodity board to drive food prices in the country.
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The Executive Director of Transparency and Economic Development Initiatives (TEDI), Emeka Ogazi has warned Nigerians on the dangers of chemical fertilizers, saying they must take steps to avoid chemical farming for their health and environment.
The Niger state governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, has advocated a special funds to be created by state and federal governments to farmers in terms of land preparation, fertilizer among others.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday, inaugurated the Large-Scale Integrated Rice Mill in Sheda, Kwali, Abuja, to enhance rice production.
The Kebbi Government had announced plans to partner with Egyptian experts in agriculture and livestock production for the development of the state.
A young master’s degree holder in geography, Viviane Kakou didn’t want to spend her career in an office. She chose agriculture out of passion. Thanks to the African Development Bank (AfDB), her dream of becoming an agricultural entrepreneur is taking shape.
Confessionally, Katsina state is among the luckiest states to have acquired five multi-billion Naira irrigation projects littered across the state. Conservatively, these projects – Zobe, Jare, Dallaji, Sabke, and Jibia dam projects have gulped over 150 billion Naira from the Federal government in the last three decades. For instance, Zobe water supply project Phase I and II alone was appropriated N3.227 billion in the 2017 Appropriation under a budget line, FMOWR64053426. This is in addition to the “little chip in” by the Katsina state government, “now and then”. For example, in August 2003, the then-governor Umaru Yar’adua’s government allocated a princely sum of N317 million for funding a 16-kilometer supply of water from Zobe Dam to Dutsinma town. One can only appreciate the staggering huge resources allocated to these projects after going through their financial audits. These projects, like all other civil engineering projects, have lifespan whether utilized or unutilized, and it will be a colossal loss of public resources, and a disservice to the nation if they attain their lifespan without reaping the expected benefits. Katsina state government must do everything possible to derive the maximum benefits from these projects. So, the major concern is how to make these underperforming, almost abandoned projects perform excellently for the benefit of Katsina state and the nation at large.
Nostalgically, my hope of a better tomorrow for Katsina state was kindled in 2008 when I joined experts from ABU Zaria who were commissioned to make a project proposal for revamping agriculture in the state. On that note, I subconsciously dreamt of Katsina state gloriously galloping ahead of its peers at the envy of Kano and Kaduna states. The revamping project took us to all nooks and crannies of the state and dug out the actual and potential of agricultural resources littered across the state. I led the Irrigation team that appraised 25 selected irrigation schemes/projects under State and Federal Governments. The state has 36,200 ha of potentially irrigable land in the Fadama and over 10,000 ha of land that can be developed for irrigation under the irrigation projects of the Federal government for the Zobe, Jibia, and Sabke dams. Irrigation provides meaningful employment during the dry season, intensifies land use, and provides food during periods of scarcity. It is also a source of foreign exchange when food crops are exported outside the country. Additionally, irrigation prevents rural-urban migration with its consequent social ills and sure way of reducing poverty.
The Embassy of Japan in Nigeria and Sasakawa Africa Association (formerly SG2000) have reiterated their commitment to strengthen joint efforts to help Nigeria transform the agricultural sector.
A global agricultural organisation, HarvestPlus, has mobilised more than 5,000 women to promote the consumption of biofortified crops enriched with micronutrients and vitamins in Kaduna State.