The Federal Government has announced that dry season wheat cultivation would begin to generate 10,000 metric tonnes of the product and cut imports.
The government announced this through the National Agricultural Land Development Authority, which stated that the trial phase of dry season wheat production in Jigawa State had just begun.
Paul Ikonne, NALDA’s Executive Secretary, said the state government had provided a 100-hectare wheat field in Marke town, Kaugama Local Government Area, Jigawa, which will employ 300 youths.
NALDA had delivered seeds, pumping machines, generators, fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides to selected farmers in the project site, according to Ikonne, who visited the site.
He said that NALDA will also train the farmers, oversee and support them during the agricultural season, and remove products from the farm to assure market availability.
“Wheat is grown in nine states, with 2,500 hectares of land granted by state governments, one of which being Jigawa. He stated in a statement on Friday that the 2,500 hectares of land will yield 10,000 metric tons of wheat.
He said the dry season farming was flagged off in Jigawa because of the soil texture of the state which he described as suitable for wheat production.
He said, “This 100 hectares of land donated by the state government would take 300 farmers. NALDA would be providing them with the seeds, pumping machines, pesticides, and herbicides.
“And at the end of the day, NALDA would do the off-taking. So it is purely an out-growers project that NALDA has brought to Jigawa State.”
The governor of Jigawa State, Mohammed Abubakar, was cited as saying that the state will provide all necessary help to NALDA to complete the project.
Ada Peter
