The Federal Government has launched an initiative to empower small-scale farmers in Niger State with mechanized farming tools and equipment as part of its determination to reduce the high cost of farm inputs for smallholder farmers in the country.
Minister of Agriculture, Aliyu Abdullahi Sabi in his address in Minna during flag-off of distribution of farming equipment said the initiative aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda as well as the declaration of a state of emergency on food security in July 2023.
Sabi said the programme was part of short-term plans to reduce the high cost of farm inputs and support smallholder farmers while reiterating the federal government’s commitment to boosting food production, creating jobs, and making food affordable for Nigerians.
According to him, ” The federal government is determined to reduce the high cost of farm inputs and support smallholder farmers. We are committed to boosting food production, creating jobs, and making food affordable for Nigerians”.
Flagging-off the distribution, Niger State Governor Mohammed Bago applauded President Tinubu for his continuous support for agriculture, adding that Federal Government’s all-year-round farming initiative would encourage farmers, enhance food security, and support the state’s agricultural development plan.
Bago stated, ” Niger State from 2026, we are going to start a pilot scheme of 2 million women in agriculture. This initiative is going to transition some women out of poverty.
“Niger State will start the Cooperative Bank of Niger. We are going to open that bank with N2 billion it is for agriculture only. We are going to invite all the corporate organisations to support this initiative. This will reduce the burden of interest rates, it will reduce the burdens of hardship in lending”.
Also, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Marcus Ogunbiyi, explained that 35% of the inputs are reserved for women farmers, aligning with the National Gender Policy on Agriculture.
The items include herbicides, cocoa fertilizer, fungicides, knapsack sprayers, growth enhancers, tomato seeds, power tillers, and water pumps among others.
