Kogi VCDP begins distribution of irrigation pumps, tube-wells to farmers
Story from Rabi’atu, Lokoja
The Kogi State Value Chain Development Programme under the Federal Government of Nigeria/International Fund for Agricultural Development (FGN/IFAD) assisted project, has commenced distribution of irrigation pumps and tube wells to farmers in the state, to boost dry season rice production in the state.
The Kogi State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr David Apeh, who flagged off the distribution in Lokoja, commended VCDP for the initiative.
Mr Apeh urged farmers to make judicious use of the items for their own benefits as well as their family, the state and the nation at large.
Speaking from his past experience in the state, the commissioner appealed to the beneficiaries not to sell the equipment but to take ownership of them.
The State Coordinator of Kogi VCDP, Dr Stella Adejoh, said the pumps were distributed to farmers to enhance their productivity during the 2021/2022 dry season.
She explained that the beneficiaries of the tools were farmers already captured on their database in three out of five benefiting local government areas in the state for dry season rice production.
According to her, the three major rice producing local government areas are Lokoja, Ibaji and Ajaokuta along the river banks with a favourable environment for rice production during the dry season.
Adejoh stressed that the Kogi VCDP is intervening in five out of the 21 local government areas of the state in the cassava and rice value chain, assuring that the program would be extended to other LGAs with additional funding.
She said that the beneficiaries had paid their matching grant of 30 or 35 per cent depending on their categories out of the total cost of the tools, while the government paid the remaining 70 or 65 per cent as the case may be through the VCDP.
Doctor Adejoh emphasised that the essence of the matching grant was to enable the farmers to show commitment and take ownership of the items given to them.
”We are not only giving you the tools but we are also supporting you by teaching you the best agronomy practices to increase your yield and enhance your production,” she said.
She commended the farmers for doing very well during the previous dry season rice production and urged them not to disappoint the government but to improve on their performances.
Dr Adejoh reiterated that the development objective of VCDP is to ensure food security, empower the rural farmers to lift them out of poverty and enhance the economy.
She expressed her delight over the distribution of the tools to the beneficiaries and the impacts the VCDP had made in achieving its goals and objectives in the state.
Two of the beneficiaries, Malam Kudu Muhammed, the Chairman of Kabawa Cluster, and Hajiya Sekinat Yakubu, a female farmer, thanked the government and IFAD/VCDP for the gesture.
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