The Nasarawa State Government has procured 42, 000 bags of assorted fertiliser for distribution to farmers in the state at subsidised rate.
Mr Lawee Yusuf, the State Commissioner for Agriculture and Water Resources, disclosed this in an interview on Wednesday in Lafia.
Yusuf said government had earlier proposed to procure about 93 trucks of fertiliser and improved seeds for the 2016 farming season.
He said government, however, had to reduce the fertiliser to 70 trucks (42,000 bags) due to the current economic reality.
The commissioner explained that the government would soon commence distribution of the fertiliser and improved seeds to farmers at 50 per cent subsidy.
According to the commissioner, government has put appropriate measures in place with critical stakeholders to ensure equitable distribution of the inputs to genuine farmers across the nooks and crannies of the state.
He said attention would be given to farmers displaced by communal clashes in terms of the distribution of improved seeds.
Meanwhile, the State Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Mr Muazu Ishaq, has called on government to provide fertiliser and other inputs to farmers early enough for increase yield.
Ishaq said that the timing for the provision of fertiliser was late as most farmers usually commence preparation for the planting season with the onset of the first rain around March.
He appealed to the government to carry AFAN along in the distribution of the farm inputs considering its reach in order to avoid diversion of the items.
Ishaq also appealed to government to assist farmers with credit facilities to improve on their farms, adding that farmers have the capacity to feed the nation if given adequate support by government.
“It is high time government pays genuine attention to agriculture by assisting small scale farmers toward mechanisation and adoption of modern farming techniques.
“This is critical for the nation’s survival given the fall in oil price at the international market,’’ Ishaq said.
