100 commercial exhibitors grace Niger wet season agric fair

By Justina Asishana, Minna

OVER 100 commercial exhibitors, government officials, private investors and about 5000 participants attended the Niger State wet season agricultural inputs and equipment Fair.

The fair, according to the state Commissioner of Agriculture, Alhaji Haliru Jikantoro, is to create access to improved agricultural seeds and inputs, strengthen farmer access to credit and loan repayment processes and link providers and users of agricultural mechanisation equipment and services.

He noted that even though the state has tremendous potentials for the production of most staple and high-value crops, the level of productivity of these crops remains relatively low, largely due to the use of manual equipment, recycled seeds and limited access to improved technologies.

Jikantoro said agriculture is key to the development of the nation, enhancement of food security, employment generation and wealth creation.

He added that agricultural production practices require an intensive infusion of improved practices for higher productivity, adding that the farmers will also benefit from the availability of varied nutrient-fortified and improved crop varieties with the capacity to ensure good health through sufficient micronutrients.

The commissioner further stated that the government is focused on reforming the agricultural sector, with a view to achieving self-sufficiency in food production, increased earnings for

farmers to position them to utilising the state’s comparative advantages of abundant arable land, water and human resources.

The Niger state Chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Alhaji Shehu Galadima appealed to the government to provide lands and tractors for farmers while emphasising the need for the employment of agro-rangers to help protect the farmers when they go to their farms.