The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, has distributed seeds, fertilisers, and other inputs to 2000 farmers in Niger state, under the National Agricultural Growth Scheme and Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP).
The National Project Officer of NAGS-AP, Mr Ishaku Buba disclosed this on Thursday during the distribution of inputs for the 2024/2025 dry season wheat farming in Garafini and Swashi communities in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger state.
According to Buba, who was represented by Musaku Emmanuel, from the ministry, the scheme targets 2,000 farmers in two clusters, and it has taken off on 2,000 hectares of land in the two communities using mechanised farming methods.
The programme, aimed at making Nigeria self-sufficient in wheat production, was in collaboration with SMK Nigeria Limited, a private conglomerate.
“This initiative is expected to improve the living conditions of the community and address the shortfall of wheat production in the country.
“SMK Nigeria Limited provides the farmers with NPK and Urea fertilisers as well as certified and improved seeds of wheat,” the Project Officer said.
FG secured a $134m loan from AfDB to support the NAGS-AP Project
In November 2024, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security announced that it had secured a loan facility of $134m from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to help farmers boost seeds and grain production in the country through the National Agricultural Growth Support Scheme-Agro Pocket (NAGS-AP) Project.
The Minister, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, disclosed this while flagging off the 2024/2025 National Dry Season Farming Calabar, along with the Governor of Cross River State.
He explained that the loan would aid the support of 250,000 wheat farmers across the wheat-producing states, by providing them with subsidized agricultural inputs
“For the 2024/2025 dry season farming, the project is targeted to support 250,000 wheat farmers across the wheat-producing states with subsidized agricultural inputs to cultivate about 250,000 hectares with an expected output of about 750,000 metric tons of wheat to be added to the food reserve to reduce dependence on importation of the product and also increase domestic consumption.
“Equally the program will provide support to 150,000 rice farmers under the second phase to cover all the 37 states, including FCT, with an expected output of about 450,000 metric tons,” the minister said.
What you should know
- According to the National Bureau of Statistics, 14 states produce wheat in Nigeria, namely: Kano, Jigawa, Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Bauchi, Kaduna, Borno, Yobe, Gombe, Katsina, Plateau, Adamawa, and Cross River.
- Nigeria is currently not producing enough grains including wheat.
- As part of efforts to combat food insecurity, the federal government, earlier this year, approved a 150-day duty-free window to allow the importation of maize, husked brown rice, and wheat.
- Nairametrics reported that in September 2024, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) distributed wheat to over 68,000 vulnerable households in Katsina State, to help the state combat food insecurity.