Delta State enrolls over 30,000 farmers for CBN’s Anchor Borrowers scheme

Delta State Government has registered over 30,000 farmers for the Central Bank’s Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP).

The State Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Austin Chikezie, who disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Asaba, said over 30,000 farmers registered spread across the selected enterprises of Cassava, Oil Palm, Rice and Fisheries.

Chikezie explained that the CBN Anchor Borrowers scheme would be used as a financial model for small holder farmers in Oil Palm, Rice, Cassava and Fish.

According to the Commissioner, “through the scheme, qualified commodity out growers are assisted to identify an anchor firm (off taker or Processor) and supported with loan at nine per cent interest rate to increase their farm holdings in the state’’.

He also said high quality inputs and technical assistance would be provided for farmers.

Chikezie disclosed that the state government had commenced the raising of 220, 000 improved oil palm seedlings for distribution to 250 farmers for cultivation on 500 hectares of Oil palm plantations.

He said five mini-oil mills have been fabricated and ready for distribution to farmers, adding that the oil palm programme will create 100 direct jobs and over 300 indirect jobs in the state. He also spoke on rice production.

“In rice production, plans are on to ensure that rice cultivated in the state meets international standards, even as the state government has approved N51 million to boost its production by ensuring all season farming”, he said.

Amnesty Office to establish 10,000 farms, employ 40,000 workers

The Presidential Amnesty Programme Office has disclosed plans to establish 10,000 farms with revenue generation capacity of N58billion annually under its agricultural programme for 2017.

Speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, the co-ordinator of the programme, Paul Boroh, the initiative was to train ex-agitators while providing employment and enriching the economy.

According to Boroh, “the impact of this initiative on the economy is that if each of the 10,000 ex-agitators are gainfully trained, they may generate N240 million yearly which will amount to N240 billion”.

The Amnesty boss also said if 10,000 ex-agitators are successfully trained to be farm owners, they can employ 40,000 farm workers and a logistics Processing Value Chain of 30,000 jobs across the Niger Delta.

“While the 40,000 farm workers will in return also generate N600,000 each which is N24 billion, while Logistics/Processing will yield N360,000 for 30,000 workers yearly which will amount to N14.8 billion”, Boroh said.

While commenting on the benefits of agriculture in providing employment opportunities, he said the initiative by Presidential Amnesty Office was geared toward ensuring that people of the Niger Delta region earned a living rather than beg for it.

“The Niger Delta people are committed to exploring the agricultural potential of this nation to its maximum advantage”, he added.

Boroh, who is also the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta affairs, noted that present administration was committed to laying a solid economic foundation for the future through mechanised farming.

EU sets new rules for marketing fruit

The European Commission (EU) has proposed a set of new rules to modernize and harmonize the production and marketing chain for fruit propagating material and fruit plants, a statement on its website shows.

The law which applies as of 1, January 2017, provide for a harmonized certification scheme that reflects the approach of a majority of EU Member States and the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO).

”The harmonized certification scheme sets out minimum requirements concerning the health, identity, quality, and suitability of fruit propagating material and plants intended for production of fruit trees and fruits. 

This will provide a level playing field for producers and clear and transparent information for buyers” it reads

The statement reveals that the new the fruit sector represents 5.9 % of the total output value of the European agricultural industry.

”Additional harmonized rules for the registration of plant varieties along with the publication of an EU register of varieties of fruit plants will improve trace-ability and promote the dissemination of information regarding the varieties that are placed on the market.” it added

The new rules will stimulate EU’s single market in this sector, strengthen the export of high quality products, and allow the consumers to make informed choices.

FG to construct 360 dams, Lakes to boost irrigation farming

The Federal Government has disclosed plans to construct about 360 lakes and dams across the 36 states of the federation to enhance irrigation farming.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh disclosed this while discussing some of the 2017 plans to boost agriculture in the country. He also said the government would also distribute fertilisers and chemicals to farmers to aid the dry season cultivation.

“This year, we will work on dams, we are also going to start improving the breed of cows to improve the quality of meat, milk and cut down grazing and conflicts between herdsmen and farmers”, he informed.

Lamenting the neglect of dams in certain states, Ogbeh noted that Kano State had no fewer than 23 un-utilized dams, Oyo – 23, Ogun – 12 dams while Imo had many moribund lakes and dams, which would be cleaned up and utilized in 2017. The Federal Government would be constructing 10 lakes and dams in each of the 36 states of the federation.

Speaking further on the proposed plans for 2017, he highlighted other agricultural projects for the year such as improvement of cattle breeds, establishment of cattle colonies in states, procurement of more rice mills for distribution to communities, vegetable oil mills, tractors and improved seeds.

“We are looking at building cattle colonies in the states that are willing to give us land to confine cows in one place. We will also prioritize processing of cassava leaves, maize tusk, groundnut shells for feeding cows and slowly persuade the Fulani herdsmen to stop roaming their cows,’’ the Minister said.

He also said cashew processing factories would also be established in the country to facilitate exportation of cashew to other countries, while noting that the implementation of the plans which had been included in the 2017 budget would commence as soon as funds were disbursed.

KANO PRODUCES 1.6M TONS OF RICE IN 2016

Farmers in Kano state have produced 1,551,720 tons of rice in 2016 as against the 692,481 tons produced in 2015, the state Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has said.

Ganduje announced this at Kano Seed Processing Centre, Kadawa in Garun Malam local government area during an interacting session with farmers on loan recovery of the Central Bank of Nigeria/Bank of Agriculture/Kano state Rice Anchor-Borrowers Programme.

The governor said the state has recorded an increase of 95.2 tons and that might not be unconnected with the state government’s renewed interest in agriculture, as part of efforts to diversify the local economy.

He said: “Wheat production in the state increased from 9, 495, 024 tons in 2015 to 17, 717, 000 tons in 2016, showing a swell of 84 percent.”

He revealed that the bumper harvest recorded last year in Kano showed a significant increase in the production of other commodities like maize, millet, groundnut and cow peas, expressing that with the government’s commitment, barring unanticipated developments, the output would be multiplied this year.

On impediments to the farmers’ productivity, the governor said: “I have noticed that there are two major issues in Anchor-Borrower Programme. Farmers are complaining that they are not getting the assistance at the time they need it, and that constituted a major problem. Secondly, those who are involved in the scheme (CBN and BOA) are complaining that farmers are not paying back what has been given to them”.

Ganduje therefore, promised that these issues as well as that of availability of inputs would be addressed, as government and the banks involved, would ensure that farmers get appropriate assistance and other intervention in time.

He urged beneficiaries of the CBN/BOA/Kano state Rice Anchor-Borrowers Programme to ensure that they repay the loan given them accordingly since it is a revolving facility that will pave way for other farmers to benefit, pointing out the state is poised to increase its rice production to about half of the country’s rice requirement this year.

He maintained that his administration would concentrate more on agriculture this year to ensure multiplication of farmers output, pointing out that the administration recognizes the fact that it must work hard to improve capacity of farmers and address the many factors that contribute to their minimal productivity.

“Economic realities have shown that Nigeria’s future prosperity depends on investment in our farmers, to enable them become well prepared to revamp food productivity as oil money is no longer coming in as usual”, the governor asserted.

Earlier, the representative of Central Bank of Nigeria, Alhaji AbdulKadir Ahmad said the guarantee given by the state government was behind the success of the programme, highlighting that N960 million was allocated to Kano farmers and each got N367, 000 worth of loan, in terms of seedlings, pesticides, allied agricultural inputs and cash.

The Chairman, Kano Anchor Borrower Recovery Team, Prof. Mahmud Ibrahim Daneji clarified that about 5,540 farmers benefited from the programme and some have started paying back with farm produce, as agreed between the stakeholders, urging others to expedite repayment to avoid legal action against them.