FG, IFAD Support 476 Taraba Farmers With Inputs To Boost Food Security

In a fresh push to strengthen food production and deepen Nigeria’s food security drive, the federal government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), have provided farm inputs worth N373,000, to each 476 farmers in Taraba State.

The intervention, implemented under the IFAD-supported Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP), targets farmers across eight local government areas of the state.

The beneficiaries were drawn from Ardo-Kola, Bali, Donga, Gassol, Jalingo, Karim Lamido, Takum and Wukari local government areas.

Speaking at the distribution exercise in Jalingo, the National Programme Coordinator of IFAD-VCDP, Dr Fatima Aliyu, said the support formed part of sustained efforts to strengthen the agricultural production base and position farmers to contribute more effectively to national food security.

Dr. Aliyu, who was represented by the National Production Adviser, Alhaji Nura Daura, said the intervention would enable farmers to adopt modern, research-based farming practices, capable of increasing yields, improving incomes and enhancing rural livelihoods.

“This initiative is part of our continuous effort to strengthen the production base and enhance the livelihoods of our hardworking farmers, who are the backbone of our rural economy.

“It is also part of our contribution to national food security. The commitment of the federal government and the Taraba State Government to providing critical agricultural inputs has enabled farmers to adopt modern, research-based practices, thereby increasing productivity, improving incomes and enhancing the livelihoods of our beneficiaries,” she said.

The national programme coordinator commended the federal and Taraba State governments for their continued support for agricultural development and urged the beneficiaries to deploy the inputs strictly for the purpose they were provided.

Dr. Aliyu disclosed that the support was being implemented under the VCDP matching grant scheme, with each of the 476 beneficiaries making a 50 per cent counterpart contribution of N186,500.

She said each farmer would receive a package, comprising bags of NPK fertiliser, two bags of urea fertiliser, 50 kilogrammes of rice seed and two litres of pre- and post-emergence herbicides, with the total package valued at N373,000.

The Taraba State Commissioner for Agriculture, Prof. Nicholas Namessan, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mrs Serah Ali, described the intervention as a major boost to the state’s agricultural sector and food-production capacity.

He said the sustained provision of farm inputs by the Federal Government, IFAD-VCDP and the Taraba State Government had enabled farmers to adopt proven agricultural technologies and improve rice and cassava production.

According to him, the support has increased farmers’ incomes, improved their living standards and strengthened food security across communities in the state.

Prof. Namessan stressed that, agriculture remained central to the food-security and economic-development agenda of the administration of Governor Agbu Kefas.

Also speaking, the Taraba State Programme Coordinator, Mr Irimiya Musa, represented by Mr Bulus Maiyaki, charged the beneficiaries to make effective and responsible use of the inputs to increase production and justify the confidence reposed in them.

He said the intervention would support efforts to expand food production, reduce pressure on household food supplies and improve the livelihoods of farming communities across Taraba State.