Cbn Contributes Five Truckloads Of Fertiliser To Aid Bauchi Farmers

Governor Bala Mohammed Inaugurates Committee for Fertilizer Distribution

By Segun Awofadeji, BAUCHI – Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, has officially launched a committee tasked with the distribution of 70 trucks of assorted fertilizers donated to Bauchi State farmers by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

During the inauguration ceremony held at the Government House in Bauchi, Governor Mohammed commended the federal government for the generous gesture, highlighting its potential to significantly support grassroots farmers and enhance agricultural production in the state.

The state government, on its part, has taken steps to ensure the availability of NPK fertilizer for the 2024 farming season, with a subsidized rate of N20,000 per bag. Relevant agencies have been given explicit instructions to make these commodities accessible to farmers across the 20 Local Government Areas of the State.

The Governor, represented by his Deputy, Rt. Hon. Mohammed Auwal Jatau, recalled the recent distribution of agricultural machinery and equipment, including tractors, rice milling machines, groundnut decorticator machines, multipurpose trashes, knapsack sprayers, animal feed crushers, and tricycles, to assist eligible farmers for the upcoming farming season.

In addition, the state government has provided support to 10 communities through a Community Revolving Fund (CRF), with each beneficiary receiving a $25,000 cheque, amounting to a total of $250,000 from the state’s ACReSAL Funds.

All these efforts are aimed at complementing the Federal Government’s initiatives toward ensuring food security in the state and the country at large. Despite the challenges posed by limited resources, the government has accorded agriculture the priority it deserves, given Bauchi State’s abundance of land, human capital, and natural resources.

To ensure a fair and effective distribution process, the committee has been tasked with designing criteria for the selection of genuine farmers and farmers’ associations across the state. They will also oversee the equitable distribution of the assorted fertilizer to the benefiting farmers, with a report to be submitted to the state government within three weeks.

The chairman of the committee, Alhaji Nuhu Ahmed Wabi, who is the Emir of Jamaare, expressed gratitude to the state government for the opportunity to serve and pledged to uphold justice and equity during the distribution process.