Gov Wada tasks FG on rice importation

He said the decision to embarked on massive agricultural revolution in the state was because of its potential for mass job creation, wealth generation and food sufficiency.Wada stated this during the presentation of cheques to farmers that participated in the accelerated rice production programme in the state, stressing the need for Nigerians to continue to […]

He said the decision to embarked on massive agricultural revolution in the state was because of its potential for mass job creation, wealth generation and food sufficiency.
Wada stated this during the presentation of cheques to farmers that participated in the accelerated rice production programme in the state, stressing the need for Nigerians to continue to mount pressure on the federal government to sustain the ban in view of its huge benefit to the country.
He pointed out that Nigeria, with her vast arable land and climatic condition, cannot only produce enough rice to feed the teeming population, but for export to other countries.
According to him, if the government sustains the current agricultural revolution in the country, the nation would be self reliant on rice production and even commence rice exportation to other countries soon.
He said a total of 1,500 farmers were registered for the programme while 2,000 hectares of land was cleared, saying, “The 60 to 40 percent ratio for government and farmers respectively was occasioned by the fact that the government provided the land and all the necessary inputs. Buying back the 40 percent share of the farmers was aimed at creating ready market for the farmers at all times.”
He said the money from the government’s share would be reinvested in the farms, adding that government would continue to build on the experiences gathered at the experimental stages in Lokoja and Kotonkarfi and  replicate similar rice farm in other flood prone areas like Ajaokuta, Idah, Ibaji, Bassa Ofu and Omala local government areas.
The coordinator of the project, Dr. A. K Muhammad said that the least farmer gets N19,000 while the highest person got N100,000 and urged  farmers to increase output  in the next season.