Niger State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security inspects farmlands to enhance agricultural productivity. 

productivity.

By Our Correspondent.

Niger State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has embarked on a high-level visit to farmers to promote best practices and improve agricultural productivity in line with the state Governor Farmer Mohammed Umaru Bago’s agricultural revolution of ensuring food security.

The Permanent Secretary of Niger State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Matthew Ahmed, led the team to inspect Niger Foods Green House which is located along the Minna-Bida road and Edozhigi irrigation scheme in Gbako local government and the 57.3 hectares of land allocation for interested permanent secretaries to farm rice in Kakankpagi in Katcha local government area of Niger state.

The inspection team consists of directors of the various departments in the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and staff of the Niger State Agricultural Mechanization Development Authority (NAMDA).

Dr Matthew Ahmed said the visit aims to assess farmers’ current practices and provide guidance on adopting more impactful and innovative methods.

“We want to ensure that our farmers are aware of the latest technologies and innovations in agriculture and that they are adopting best practices to improve their yields,” Ahmed said.

According to him, the visit, which includes directors, engineers, and other stakeholders from the ministry and the Niger State Agricultural Mechanization Development Authority (NAMDA), also aims to monitor the infrastructure provided by the government, such as the African Development Bank-funded ATASP-1 project, which has constructed canals to enable farmers to grow crops three times a year.

The permanent secretary emphasized that the overall goal of the visit is to improve farmers’ livelihoods, increase yield production, and reduce food security challenges in the country.

“We are committed to reducing poverty and increasing food production, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1 and 2,” he said.

He also highlighted the importance of using technology to improve agricultural productivity, citing the example of the Niger Foods Green House, which uses modern technology to promote agricultural development.

In addition, Ahmed announced that the state government plans to allocate 57.3 hectares of land to interested permanent secretaries and directors for rice production as part of efforts to promote farming among civil servants.

He also assured farmers that the government is addressing the challenges of herders, including establishing the Ministry for Nomadic and Pastoral Affairs and the Ministry of Homeland Security.

Also speaking, the Coordinating AGRA Intervention program in Niger State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security,
Malam Alhassan Umaru said the inspection exercises are to improve policy implementation, stakeholder coordination, data monitoring, and evaluation of all AGRA programs.

He said it also seeks to assess the level of implementation and farmers’ challenges, amend policies, and realign strategies to ensure smooth project implementation.

Mrs. Caroline Aro, Farm Manager of Niger Foods Green House, who toured the team around the Green House, said the farm specializes in producing high-quality vegetables such as tomatoes, bell pepper, super habanero, and seedless baby cucumbers.

She said the Niger Food Green House had recorded significant success in vegetable production, with over a tonne of cucumber harvested within a short period.
“We planted the cucumber on Nov. 16, 2024, and harvested over a tonne,” she said.

Also, Alhaji Yahaya Umaru, a rice farmer, said that before the intervention, farmers in the area could not engage in irrigation farming. Still, with the construction of irrigation canals, they can now farm three times a year.

“We can now do three cycles of farming in a year; before, during the dry season, we had nothing to do, but now, this is my second time farming,” he said.

Umaru added that with the support of ATASP-1, farmers in the area now harvest about three tonnes per hectare, equivalent to 65 to 70 bags of 75kg of rice.

He noted that farming, previously seen as a heritage, is now a profitable business and government intervention.