Bakalori produces 100,000mt of rice annually

Mandate:Our main responsibility in Bakalori is to oversee the entire activities of the irrigation project, which is to regulate the dam, to supply water to irrigate 23,000 hectares; to supply water for domestic use downstream to parts of Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi states; to control flooding when we have excess of rainfall, and also to […]

Mandate:
Our main responsibility in Bakalori is to oversee the entire activities of the irrigation project, which is to regulate the dam, to supply water to irrigate 23,000 hectares; to supply water for domestic use downstream to parts of Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi states; to control flooding when we have excess of rainfall, and also to discharge the aquifers downstream.
The main activity of the irrigation project is to supply the farmers with water through the various sizes of canals in the project. We have about 500 kilometer of different sizes of canals – from supply canals to main canal, secondary canal and to tertiary canals. We also have drains as well as access road.
But all these are to serve a total of 23,000 hectares of irrigation area. The capacity of the dam is more than 23,000 as far as irrigation is concerned – when the analysis of the water balance is carried out. There is still room for expansion for about 5,000 hectares.
History:
The dam has been in existence since the past 35 years. It was initially identified by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) in the early 60s and later the Federal Government of Nigeria awarded the contract for the construction of the dam, which was all completed in the early 80s and was commissioned by the then President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1982, Alhaji Shehu Aliyu Usman Shagari.
Capacity:
The irrigation area of 23,000 hectares of course – some of it like 15,000 hectares – is made up of sprinkler irrigation system while the 8,000 hectares is for gravity irrigation which we also call surface irrigation. We have different types of irrigation, ranging from surface irrigation, basin irrigation, and border irrigation systems.
Challenges:
Over the years there have been challenges because of lack of power for the sprinkler irrigation areas to perform effectively. The combined efforts of the farmers and also our own staff were able to convert some of the sprinkler areas into surface irrigation system. Now we have about 11,000 hectares that are cultivated by gravity irrigation system.
Of course there are challenges of dilapidation of some irrigation structures especially at the tail end and that is what we are battling with all the time to put them back to shape so that they can be very effective in supplying water to the farmers.
Output:
In the dry season normally we deal with about 21,000 farmers. In the wet season we deal with about 30,000 farmers because even areas that are not irrigated during the dry season, most of the areas during the wet season are put under cultivation as you might have seen when you visited the area.
The crop cultivated here normally is rice. There is also vegetables and wheat production that was also reintroduced. We also have a number of collaboration with other agencies in this drive, especially under the transformation agenda of the federal government. We have also other crops like sugar cane and other legumes been cultivated.
But during the wet season, apart from rice, we have millet, corn and others. In fact the project is effectively servicing three local governments in Zamfara State – they are Maradun, Talata Mafara and Bakura local governments. Their population is about 601,000 according to the 2006 census but presently estimated by the World Bank experts working here to be about 750,000.
Service:
Mainly we serve the farmers here by giving them water throughout the year to cultivate different kinds of crops but most importantly rice. For the three, four years I have been here we’ve been able to sustain that throughout the season and we had a number of sensitisation visits as well as several meetings to bring the farmers on board as Water User Association that are very important stakeholders in the production of food and also maintenance of the irrigation structures. Normally these are our responsibilities or activities here in Bakalori.
Projection:
Well, when I came here I did all I could to see that some of the dreams of this project are realised. In 1979 this project was designed to, among others cultivate raw materials for processing for four different companies or industries: sugar, from the sugar cane, tomato paste from the tomatoes, flour from the wheat to be cultivated and rice from the rice to be cultivated as rice mills, flourmills and tomato canning factories were meant to be established here.
I kept searching until when we had a discussion with the manager of Unity Bank, who also promised to let some of the investors know about the potentials of Bakalori irrigation project here in Talata Mafara. Luckily they had a proposal and one of the investors called Norway Cleaners based in Kaduna came and inspected the project and was moved requested for a piece of land which we gladly gave to them, they moved into construction.
From what I heard, because I do follow up, I understood that there is a problem between the bank officials here and also the investor in terms of shares and other things as regard to the company. But luckily enough, about a month ago they have reconciled. The person came and we met here with the representative of the farmers and there was also arrangement for follow-up on which they met in Kaduna last week.
All that is left is to make agreement between the investor and the farmers on what to produce and what kind of rice to produce and what quantity to produce and his own commitment on buying the rice unlike what we are facing now.
The other aspect the investor said he would like to ensure is the issue of off-takers. He said it will not be reasonable for him to come and install a rice mill here and use his money to buy rice and start milling it when he has no ready markets for his produce. He wants to ensure that he has outlet for selling the rice. So, he also wants to get some commitments from some of the vendors or super markets that will be able to take this rice.
These are some of the things I learnt the managing director of the company had to put in place before he continues with all these activities of the construction. The site is in Birnin Tudu which is about 10 kilometers away from here; and it is in the middle of the irrigation area. So that is what is holding the issue to the best of my knowledge.
Mechanisation:
Part of the complaints we always receive from farmers here is that we cannot just provide water to them without giving them tractors, fertilisers and other inputs. They want us to do everything for them even when we have no access to fertiliser at the level of the river basin as an agency of the Ministry of Water Resources.
But during one of the visits of our current minister, Hon Sarah Ochekpe, the farmers told her the difficulty they were experiencing as a result of lack of single tractor at the entire irrigation site. Within two weeks of that meeting with the farmers, she mobilised 15 tractors and sent them down here. Till tomorrow, I am surprised at how she was able to make it. As at today, the 15 tractors she provided are the only tractors available for the over 35,000 farmers around this place.
Otherwise other farmers who have small holdings use their hands to till the land and to plant their rice. So there is no organised tractor hiring services here.
When the minister of agriculture visited us last year May, he promised that part of the tractor hiring or farm machineries arrangement would be in Talata Mafara. Some few months ago, some people came to survey the area and we have shown them some of the areas that could be used to house the equipment for leasing to the farmers. We are waiting for the final arrangement if they have been able to complete it to come forward. That will be a great relief to the farmers.