Dangote set to launch 25,000 hectares of rice outgrower scheme in Sokoto

Dangote Rice, a subsidiary of Dangote Group is set to launch in Sokoto, Sokoto State its multi-million naira 25,000 hectares of rice Outgrower scheme with a prospect of hundreds of thousands of employment opportunities for the rural communities inhabitants.

President of the Group, Aliko Dangote disclosed at the weekend that the company will on Wednesday, flag of with a pilot project of 500 ha by Gonroyo dam, in Goronyo community. Gonroyo dam is the second largest in the country, after Kainji.

The flag-off ceremony which will be performed by the governor of the state, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal will witness seedlings being distributed to the primary local farmers who will in turn plant the seed after which Dangote Rice Company will purchase from them for milling and final processing.

Sokoto State is second after Jigawa out of the 14 states where Dangote Rice plans to operate outgrower scheme to empower local farmers and create job opportunities for community dwellers and reduce migration to the cities.

Dangote Rice Projects in the 14 states, when, operational, will generate a significant number of jobs and increase take-home income for smallholder farmers, at the same time diversifying Nigeria’s economy and reducing the nation’s food import bill.

Statistics from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) estimates that rice demand in Nigeria reached 6.3 million MT in 2015, with only 2.3 million MT of that demand satisfied by local production.

This local production shortfall leaves a gap of 4.0 million MT that is currently being filled through formal importation of rice or illegal imports over land borders.