By Ahmed Lawal
The Federal Government, through the National Agricultural Growth Scheme – Agro Pocket (NAGS-AP) has supported 15,000 wheat farmers in Zamfara State as part of its Dry Season Farming Intervention in November and December last year.
The Zamfara State Coordinator of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Adamu Abubakar, made this announcement in Gusau, the state capital.
Dr Abubakar stated that the initiative is aimed at boosting agricultural productivity and ensuring food security across the country.
According to him, each beneficiary receives a package comprises 50 kilograms of wheat seeds, as well as NPK and Urea fertilizers.
Dr Abubakar emphasized that, the key objective of the scheme was to provide subsidized inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, and agrochemicals to smallholder and medium-scale farmers to reduce production costs and improve crop yields.
“The dry season programme, which we are currently implementing, is part of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security’s initiative, commonly known as the National Agricultural Growth Scheme – Agro Pocket,”
He further revealed that the program is being executed in phases, with the first phase, focused on wheat production, conducted in November and December last year.
“In the next few days, we will commence the rice farming intervention, which is the next phase of the program,”
He also explained that arrangements are in the advanced stage to enable 4,500 rice farmers to benefit from this upcoming phase which is rice farming intervention.
Dr. Abubakar stressed that, the NAGS-AP scheme prioritizes the cultivation of staple crops, including wheat, maize, rice, sorghum, soybean, aiming to reduce import dependency and boost domestic food production.
Through this initiative, the Federal Government would continued to demonstrate its commitment to transforming the agricultural sector, strengthening food security, and fostering economic growth by empowering farmers with essential resources and support.
