***Plans to cultivate 40,000 Hectares of Wheat across the State
By Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse
The Jigawa government has procured 54 tractors and other agricultural inputs as part of efforts to achieve 40, 000 hectres of Wheat production in this year’s dry season farming.
This was disclosed by the state governor Malam Umar Namadi Danmodi in his speech while inaugurating 53 new brand Merssy tractors at the JIgawa State Agriculture Supply Company (JASCO) in Dutse the state capital
He said “each of the 27 local government areas had been allocated with two tractors to boost wheat farming in the state”.
According to the governor the state in collaboration with the 27 local government councils’ would give 40 percent discount to the farmers in the services of the tractors and other equipments.
He said “As part of government food security policy in collaboration with the federal government his administration would cultivate 40,000 hectares of wheat farmland across the state”.
Malam Danmodi maintained that the items included the 54 new tractors with complete implements, such as tipping trailers, ridgers, harrows and ploughs, “aim at supporting large scale farming and improved mechanized farming”.
“I want to inform you that we are going to clear fields for the commencement of wheat plantation which is a federal and state’s government joint project as well as African Development Bank,” he said.
The governor indicated that Jigawa was challenged to cultivate 40,000 hectares of wheat, adding that the state had agreed to do it because it has the manpower, the capacity and the land.
He said that the tractors would be on the field Oct. 27, saying that the tractors are not for decoration but for use by the rural farming communities across the state.
Danmodi therefore asked the chairmen to make good use of the implements for the benefit of all farmers.
“Today is another important day in our effort to revolutionized agriculture in Jigawa state. We have already promised that we will try to mechanized agriculture in Jigawa in order to ensure that our farmers get value for what they do,” the governor said.
Danmodi said that the unveiling of the new tractors two per local government was in fulfilment of the promise he made to the teeming farming communities.
He explained that the idea of involving local government chairmen was because of their closeness to the people at the grassroots, noting that by involving chairmen the rural dwellers will get the benefit of the tractors.
The governor however said that the tractors were not given free as it were, but the state government would only stand as a grantor for the supplying company to ensure it recover its money from the councils installmentally.
The state Commissioner for Local Government Affairs, Alhaji Ahmed Garba, expressed appreciation to the governor for making agricultural implements accessible to the farming communities in the state.
Garba assured the government that his ministry would also put monitoring mechanism in place to ensure judicious use of the equipments.
The Managing Director, Jigawa Agricultural Supply Company Ltd (JASCO), Alhaji Rabiu Maigatari, said the idea of procuring the tractors for the local governments councils was in line with Namadi’s vision in mechanized agriculture in the state for maximum productivity.
“It is based on the directives of His Excellency that we entered into agreement with the local governments through the Ministry of Local Government Affairs on the supply of two tractors to each council,” the managing director said.
Maigatari said that the brand of Messey Fergusson Tractors is among the highest grade of tractors tested and found to be more durable within the farming community.
He said that in order to ensure ease of payment by the council areas, installmental plan of 12 months was approved by the state government, though the actual price of tractors was not mentioned.
“It is important to state that while considering the supply of the tractors, we are not unaware of the need of our large scale farmers from whom we receive individual requests to partake in this kind of project.
“In this regard, therefore, we are in talks with the Directorate of Economic Empowerment to design a mechanism that will look into the requests of our large scale farmers with the approval of His Excellency,” he said.
According to him, the company is also displaying 10 combined harvesters of which JASCO is in liaison with the Directorate of Economic Empowerment in sourcing interested large scale farmers for possible supply.