No fewer than 132 poultry farmers affected by the outbreak of bird flu in Kano State are expected to be compensated by the Federal Government.
The affected farmers incurred huge losses during the outbreak of the disease two years ago.
Alhaji Umar Kibiya-Usman, the Secretary, Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Kano State Chapter, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Tuesday.
He said all those farmers whose farms were hit by the disease between 2015 and 2016 had been verified by the Federal Government’s Committee which visited the state last week.
“We have a total of 132 poultry farmers who are waiting for the outstanding payment. They have since been verified by the committee from the Federal Ministry of Finance,’’ Kibiya-Usman said.
He said the committee which had completed its assignment and returned to Abuja, was expected to submit its report to the Federal Government, for immediate payment.
Kabiya-Usman commended the Federal Government for resolving to pay the affected farmers not only in Kano state but across the entire country.
“Over one million birds were killed by the disease in 2015 and 2016 and we are happy that the government will compensate the affected farmers,’’ he said.
The PAN scribe said the Federal Government’s gesture would go a long way in encouraging the affected farmers to restock their farms and continue with the business.
NAN recalls that the Federal Government’s team had on Wednesday, June 28, arrived Kano for the verification exercise, in preparation for the payment of outstanding compensation.