Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, on Saturday in Shagari town, headquarters of Shagari local government area flagged off 2021 sale and distribution of fertilizers to farmers at a subsidized rate of N5,250 per bag to boost farming activities in the state for wet season farming.
Tambuwal in his speech announced that the aim of the exercise is to reduce poverty as well as create more jobs in the state, disclosing that a bag of 50KG Urea and Nitrogen Phosphorus Potassium (NPK) which is sold in the market for N10,000 and N8,000 respectively would be sold for N5,250 and N4,000 only in the state.
He assured that the transport cost of all the brands of fertilizer would be borne by the state government to make the products affordable for Farmers across the state.
He urged farmers in the state to go back to their farms while assuring that the state government in collaboration with relevant security agencies has put some strategy in place for farmers to go to their farm unhindered.
He enjoined the people of the state to be security conscious, urging them to report any suspicious person or movement in their community to security agents or government officials for prompt action.
While expressing his appreciation to the people of Shagari for supporting his administration, he urged them to see government facilities as their own.
Speaking about his achievement in Shagari local government, Tambuwal said his administration has just awarded the reconstruction of Shagari – Tureta road in addition to one million litres of water recently completed among others.
Meanwhile, the governor has assigned the Commissioner of Animal Health, Prof Junaidu Abdulkadir, to oversee the ministry of agriculture until when a substantive commissioner would be appointed to the ministry.
It will be recalled that the former Commissioner for Agriculture, Honourable Azika Tureta, recently died at Usmanu Danfodiyo Teaching Hospital (UDUTH) following a brief illness.
Earlier in his welcome address, the permanent secretary in the ministry, Aliyu Muhammad Tureta, explained that the state has a comparative advantage in the production of some crops such as bemused, onions, millet, Guinea corn, wheat because of its weather.
He said the state government is poised to support anybody, group of people who are willing to engage in agriculture and that the state government had put a strategy in place to prevent the diversion of the products assuring that the products would go to the real farmers.
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