By Muhammad Lawal
Gov. Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State has announced that the newly established modern tomatoes factory in Ngaski would begin production in March.

Malam Yahaya Sarki, Special Adviser to the governor on Media, made this known in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin Kebbi on Monday.

Sarki said the governor made this known during a courtesy visit to the Emir of Yauri, Dr Muhammad Zayyanu-Abdullahi in Yauri.

Bagudu told the Emir that he had already intimated President Muhammadu Buhari on the issue to seek for his blessings for the event.

He said: “Officials of GB Foods have informed me that plans are underway for the launching and commencement of production .

“I have also informed the Presidency about it and sought for permission for the event, between March 22 and 24 in Ngaski so that the President could join us virtually due to COVID-19 protocols.

“The advantages of the firm cannot in anyway be over emphasised, as it cannot come at a better time than now when more sources of revenues for the government are direly needed.”

He explained that the firm would boost the tomatoes value chain in the state, reduce unemployment and boost the economy of the state and Nigeria in general.

Bagudu further noted that the firm would help to reduce capital flight and boost food security in the country, saying that thousands would benefit from it, down the value chain .

The governor acknowledged the sustained support of the Emir towards the Buhari administration and that of Kebbi State and urged him to sustain the tempo.

According to him, Buhari has honoured Yauri Emirate and Kebbi State by completing the road construction in the area and appointing two illustrious sons of the state.

He listed the appointees as Alhaji Abubakar Sadiq and AbdulRasheed Bawa as the Pioneer Managing Director of Hydro Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC) and Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) respectively.

The Emir thanked the governor and his entourage for the visit, saying that Yauri Emirate would always remain grateful to the governor for the various developments in the area.

Bagudu was accompanied on the visit by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), Alhaji Sahabi Lolo, APC Zonal Vice Chairman, Kebbi North and top Government officials.

Idowu Gabriel

The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Ekiti Region 25, is to float a foundation to drive  agribusiness among its youth members as a strategy to tackle  unemployment.

Adeoye Aribasoye,  the  newly-ordained  Youth Pastor In-Charge of the region, gave the assurance   on Sunday while addressing some  RCCG youths in Ado-Ekiti.

Aribasoye said that the aim  was to ensure youths’ contributions to national development.

According to the youth pastor, promotion of agribusiness is part of the region’s vision tagged, “R 25 Y-SAWPER”.

He explained that R 25 Y-SAWPER meant Region 25 Youth Development for Spirituality, Agribusiness, Women Empowerment, Political Integration, Entrepreneurship and Technological Innovation and Rural Rugged Evangelism.

“We are focusing on agribusiness as one of our focal points because of the rate of unemployment that we have observed in the country.

“We believe that the economy of Nigeria can be grown on agribusiness, if we take it seriously.

“One of the things we want to do, is to open the eyes of our young adults to see the opportunities in agribusiness.

“We will set up a foundation, known as Covenant People, R25 Development Foundation, that will support these youths in the area of empowering them,” Aribasoye said.

He said that youths interested in livestock farming would be provided with chicks and feeds.

“Those who want to go into arable crop farming will be supported and provided with linkages, ” he added.

The pastor said that RCCG was committed to ensuring that Nigerian youths would be heaven-focused and earthly relevant. (NAN)

By Mustapha Yauri

The Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR), Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, has urged government to distribute inputs to farmers early, in order for the beneficiaries to harvest the desired outcomes of such interventions.

Prof. Mohammed-Faguji Ishiyaku, Director of the institute, gave the advice while speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Sunday, in  Zaria.

Ishiyaku noted that often times, the preparations  for the distribution of inputs to farmers was carried out late, thereby  making the intervention getting to the end users sometimes around August.

”By that time (August) the rainy  season has gone far, it will be okay  for  poultry farmers, but for crop  production,  you  have  to start  planning  around  January  to  February.

”By February, you might have finished your procurement; you must have come with the cost of distributing of the inputs to farmers.

”This way, it will go a long way in ensuring that the benefits which government intended is harvested appropriately,’’ he said.

Ishiyaku said that given the fact that the 2021 rainy  season was  around the corner, the institute would not relent on its effort in creating  more awareness  among farming  communities across the country based on its stock of resources, including technology.

According to him, the institute had  improve  seeds  and  management  practices,  which would be presented  to stakeholders at  its  upcoming  annual  review and planning meeting  in April.

Reacting  to the  predictions by NiMET of a mid-season or terminal drought, the director advised farmers  to  plant the  ‘early  to medium maturing’ crop varieties.

He added that  the early to medium maturing crop varieties were those that aligned very well with the length of the predicted rainy  season.

”These   varieties  don’t stay long  enough;  by the  time the  drought  sets  in,  they are  almost  matured, so  the   ravaging  effect   of  the  short  rainy  season  will  be  highly  minimised .

”We have these early and medium maturing seed varieties for sorghum,  maize, beans,  ( cowpea), cotton and  groundnut”, the director said. (NAN)

By Nefishetu Yakubu

The Oil Palm Growers Association of Nigeria (OPGAN) has called for pragmatic steps by relevant government agencies to tackle the dwindling fortunes of the nation’s oil palm sector.

The group made the call at a town hall meeting organised to garner support from the Federal Government to revive the sector.

It specifically urged the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) to proffer solutions to the challenges bedevilling the sector in the country.

In a speech, the National President of OPGAN, Mr Joe Onyiuke, said the meeting was to explore the way forward on the ANCHOR Borrower’s Programme of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Onyiuke described the inauguration of OPGAN’s new liaison office in NIFOR as “key to us as oil palm farmers.

“With this office, our farmers will be able to get all the benefits and training required for the cultivation of oil palm.

“You can see that we have representatives of the CBN, commercial banks and insurance companies here.

“They are to discuss the terms and conditions that are required to make us eligible to participate in the ANCHOR Borrower’s programme,” Onyiuke said.

Also, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emiefele, represented by his Special Adviser on Development Finance, Mr Anthony Ufechukwu, said CBN was committed to reviving the oil palm sector to stop importation.

Emiefele said: “The CBN is very emphatic about reviving the oil palm sector.

“In doing this, we started by reaching out to large companies like Presco, Okomu and others to ensure that they plant and assist small scale farmers but we are not getting the results.

“So, we are going down to the roots to interact with small scale farmers, who cultivate about one to five hectares to have a strong union to promote themselves in the oil palm industry.

“I know that OPGAN consists of persons who provide more than 90 per cent of oil palm consumed in households in Nigeria.”

He said that getting the farmers under proper organisation would encourage CBN to fund them.

Emiefele said that part of the package for the association was that the farmers would be insured.

“We expect that in 10 years from now, OPGAN will be self-sustaining,” he said

Earlier, the Executive Director of NIFOR, Celestine Ikuenobe, said the core mandate of the institute is to transfer knowledge to farmers and create national wealth.

According to him, the value chain in oil palm is enormous but farmers have in the past failed to take advantage of its improved seedlings in NIFOR. (NAN)

By Bukola Adewumi
The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, USAID in collaboration with Partnership Initiative in Niger Delta (PIND), says plans are underway to boost local production of fish in the country.

Dr Ime Umoh, Director of Fisheries in the Ministry disclosed this in Abuja on Monday said the aim was to ensure food security and meet huge demand potentials.

He spoke at a virtual valedictory workshop on Aquaculture Most Impactful Practice (MIP) under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services Activity.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services Activity is a five-year (2020-2025) USAID funded project in collaboration with PIND.

The project is being implemented in Benue, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Kaduna, Kebbi, and Niger states by Winrock International.

The $16.6 million investment project which is focused on maize, rice, soybean and aquaculture is expected to expose at least two million smallholder farmers to new technologies between 2020 and 2025.

He said this has become imperative because the fisheries sector is one of the most important sectors in Nigeria, both from an economic and social standpoint.

Umoh said it has become very important to develop the sector because of its contribution to the country’s GDP, its support directly and indirectly to the society, and contributes to the livelihood, employment, and household food security of, especially, Nigeria’s coastal communities, including the Niger Delta.

The director said that the ministry has a goal of increasing domestic fish production and bridge the demand gap by supporting smallholder farmers to reduce hunger and poverty in the country.

Umoh said that the adoption of the MIP for aquaculture would promote business solutions for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) through extension delivery.

“The ministry has formulated policies to boost fish production and are collaborating with development partners, MSMEs and farmers as well as promoting investment in the aquaculture to sustain production levels.

“An example of such collaboration is the promotion of genetically improved tilapia fish seedlings in partnership with USAID and World Fish.

“I enjoined the experts present to review the findings being presented using the juvenile based model approach as an MIP and make their contributions so upon validation of the most impactful practice, the proposed business solutions will have sustainable impact in the aquaculture sector,’’ he said.

In his remarks, the Chief of Party of the project, Dr Ben Odoemena said that there was a lot of waste and inefficiencies in what small holder farmers are doing in terms of productivity when compared to other countries.

He said that there is no better time than now to adopt the juvenile based model of fish production especially with the planned ban on fish importation by the Federal Government by the year 2022.

Odoemena said that the project will create awareness of the benefits of the juvenile based model through engagements with SMEs by establishing, teaching, and disseminating the MIP.

Dr Charles Iyangbe, Senior Agricultural Economist, Office of Economic Growth and Environment USAID, Nigeria, explained that the event provides a platform for aquaculture stakeholders to present, discuss, and prioritize the business opportunities in aquaculture.

He said it would enable smallholder farmers and small and medium entrepreneurs (SMEs) to better understand the opportunities that abound in aquaculture to enhance their income and improve livelihoods.

According to him, the workshop will also highlight the public and private sectors and the potential for job creation for youth and women in the agribusiness sector.

Iyangbe said that the workshop will discuss “process of MIP identification, business case of the MIP and sustainability and scale-up of the MIP’’ and that the aim was to increase production and efficiency by the MIP approach in the country.

He said that the platform would also afford stakeholders an opportunity to discuss business and effective partnership for Nigeria’s development through private sector engagements.

Iyangbe said there is great potential in Nigeria economic growth having the largest market in the region.

The workshop was attended by senior government officials from the federal and state government, USAID Nigeria, development partners, key private sectors companies and investors.

Others include Universities, research institutions, producer groups, lead farmers, aggregators, processors, and others engaged in the aquaculture value chain in Nigeria.

By Doris Esa

The Federal Government is set to establish a Jute Bag industries for ease of cocoa and sundry crops exports to meet international best practices.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Alhaji Muhammad Nanono, made the disclosure in a statement by Ezeaja Ikemefuna Chief Information Officer of the ministry in Abuja on Friday.

Nanono stated this when the Cocoa Association of Nigeria (CAN) paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.

He said it had become imperative for Nigeria to establish its own jute bag industries to meet international best practices for the export of cocoa and sundry agricultural produce.

He said that the production of the jute bags in Nigeria would increase foreign earnings, healthy preservation and certification of the cocoa crop.

Nanono said that the ministry would seek collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning in ensuring that appropriate policy measures and counterpart funding were put in place.

He said that this would help to fast track the setting up of jute bag factories across the nation.

He said that it would also commence the cultivation of Kenaf, which can grow in any part of the country and happens to be the raw material for the production of jute bags,

He noted that cocoa was one of the commodities being promoted by the present administration in its drive to diversify the economy.

” The ministry is eager to support the farmers with the distribution of free agricultural inputs and training to enhance the capacity of cocoa farmers in the country.

” The ministry recently rolled out disease resistant and early yielding seedlings developed by the Cocoa Research Institute, Ibadan which starts yielding within 30 months of cultivation.

” These seedlings with other inputs were distributed to farmers in major cocoa producing states where 300,000 cartoons of ultimax – plus fungicides, Hydrocarbon jute bags, collapsible driers, cocoa pods and more were shared to enhance the capacity of cocoa farmers,” he said.

The minister assured that the ministry would continue to support and collaborate with the association to boost the cocoa value chain sub sector towards increasing production, creating more jobs and generating revenue for the country.

In his address, the Permanent Secretary, of the ministry, Dr Ernest Umakhihe, said that the agricultural policy put in place by the present government was poised to build an agribusiness ecosystem that will solve the challenges in the agricultural sector.

He said this would be in partnership with the state governments to achieve food security, export substitution, job creation and economic diversification.

” Cocoa has been one of the major foreign exchange earners in Nigeria apart from crude oil,” Umakhihe said.

In his remarks, the National President of CAN, Alhaji Mufutau Abolarinwa, appealed for the establishment of a special credit guarantee scheme for the cocoa farmers in Nigeria for the development and increase in cocoa production.

He said that grants and subvention from relevant agencies like Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) and others would enable the association to have access to cocoa pods, inputs and equipment needed for increase in cocoa production in Nigeria.

” The association has successfully organised workshops and seminars in collaboration with CRIN, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the state ministries across the cocoa producing states,” he said.

Abolarinwa said the aim of the seminars and workshops was to improve the quality of cocoa for export and to comply with the European Union regulations on pesticide maximum residue,” he said.(NAN)