The National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) has commenced the distribution of agricultural inputs to farmers in Abia, Kebbi and Yobe states.
The distribution of inputs was intended to support farmers across the country to optimise crop production for better yields and productivity.
The beneficiaries received a NALDA-branded bag containing high-grade fertilizer, herbicides and improved maize seeds for Abia and Yobe states while Kebbi received improved rice seeds that can effectively cover half an hectare of farmland.
In Abia, beneficiaries from all local governments of the state including those nominated by the state government and various farmers associations, gathered at the NALDA Institute of Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship, IsiAla Okpu community in Osisioma Local Government Area to receive their inputs.
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The Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the NALDA, Prince Paul Ikonne while addressing the farmers said the inputs will boost their crop production.
“The government is making sure that you can produce what you’ll eat by providing you inputs.”
Ikonne assured the farmers that NALDA will continue to support them with agricultural inputs on a regular basis, stating that the contact details of all the beneficiaries have been captured in the agency’s database for follow-up assistance and more farmers will be added to the list from time to time.
“The essence of what we’re doing here today is to ensure Nigerians understand the importance of farming, make sure we produce what we eat and to reduce the price of food in the market…we are expecting nothing less than 340 hectares to be cultivated by this farmers,”
In Kebbi, the NALDA administrator in the state, Mr Bashar Bunza, led the team that distributed the inputs to beneficiaries from the benefiting local governments.
The Chairman of the Ngaski Local Government Area, Manir Abubakar, who participated in the distribution exercise appreciated NALDA for the kind gesture.
Abubakar said the bags containing high-yielding rice seeds, fertilisers and herbicides would help farmers produce more food.
He however urged beneficiaries to utilise the inputs for what it was intended for which is farming and not to sell them.
Some of the beneficiaries spoke on the importance of the inputs to them.
For Habibu Aliyu who farms seven to eight hectares of rice annually the intervention by NALDA was a timely one as accessing fertiliser has been a daunting task, he promised to utilise it to the best of his abilities.
Similarly, NALDA team in Yobe State led by the Director of Finance, Mr. Suleiman Lawal, distributed the inputs to beneficiaries in Gashua, Bade Local Government Area.
Beneficiaries were drawn from six local government areas of the state namely Bade, Yusufari, Jakusko, Nguru, Karasuwa, and Machina.
The NALDA empowerment programme is in line with President Bola Tinubu’s directive to NALDA to reach out to farmers across the country to ensure they produce food while helping the country achieve food sufficiency.
It is expected that in the next three to four months, the outputs from this programme will help in the significant drop in the cost of food items in the market.
The empowerment of farmers by NALDA is a continuous exercise to encourage more Nigerians to go into farming to ensure self-sufficiency in food production thus boosting food security for the teeming population.
