Niger State Government has commenced the official sales and distribution of fertilizer for the 2021 wet season at the cost of N8,000 per bag.
The Deputy Governor, Ahmed Mohammed Ketso stated this on Tuesday at the flag-off ceremony in Minna, adding that the state has procured 27 and half of trucks making 15,000 metric tons of fertilizers for distribution to the 25 local government areas of the state
He explained that the government was doing everything humanely possible to mitigating the security challenges confronting the state and assured small-scale farmers of subsidized production inputs.
He also emphasized that the middlemen activities will be curtailed through the measures put in place for effective and efficient monitoring of the sales of products.
In his welcome address, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Rural Development, Haliru Zakari Jikantoro, said the current administration was determined to ensure food sufficiency and cash crops production to generate employment and wealth for the citizens to reduced youth restiveness.
He reassured farmers of access to high-quality inputs for farming activities, adding that the state will explore all options possible to leverage on the vast opportunities abound in the state while the ministry will continue to implement government agricultural policy.
On his part, the Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Niger State chapter, Alhaji Shehu Galadima, decried the state of insecurity experienced by the farmers due to attacks by the bandits, alarming scarcity of food in 2021/22 if solutions are not quickly found.
He charged on the federal government to reconsidered its stand by subsidizing agricultural inputs if food security must be attained in Nigeria.
