The Chinese government has expressed readiness to help Nigeria end the incessant farmer/herders’ clashes.
The Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Cui Jianchun said his country is willing to set up a technology-driven cattle feed production project in the country.
Jianchun spoke in Abuja on Friday while on tour of the just completed China-aid Nigeria Agriculture Demonstration Centre project in the company of the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ernest Umakhihe.
He said the project, when completed, will be a training and demonstration centre for the production of cattle feeds.
He said the technology is already in place in over 100 countries.
Jianchun said he would be seeking a 20-hectare land from the government to commence the project, which he said will be economically viable to farmers and the country.
The ambassador said he would be discussing the project with the Nigerian government, stating that the only thing they would be requiring from the government is a site for the project.
The envoy said, “I am planning to talk to the FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, to give us 20 hectares of land to build twin hall technology.
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“We use this technology to grow mushrooms for food to feed the cattle. We feed the people and then the animals. This will help curb the clashes between herders and farmers.
“We are ready from the Chinese side to bring the farmers to the demonstration centre to train them on the technology.”
The envoy also noted that the just completed China-aid Nigeria Agriculture centre project will go a long way in improving agricultural production in the country.
He said: “Food is the security that everyone needs. Without Agriculture, the whole country cannot be stable. Every year in the Chinese document on the front page, it is about farmers, and agriculture….
In his remark, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ernest Umakhihe promised that the government will take full advantage of the project.
He also revealed that the project is a grant from the Chinese government. “Understandably, it is not a loan but a grant from the Chinese government. For them to hand it over to the government, they need to have a structure on ground and have a hand in the running of the centre when it is fully operational,” he said.
The China-aid Nigeria Agriculture Demonstration project is Agriculture High-tech Abuja Industrial Park located in Bwari district. It is a technology research and training centre aimed at equipping farmers with modern day farming technology.