The Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje has said the state will take delivery of an integrated fertiliser blending plant in two weeks.
Ganduje disclosed this on Tuesday during the inspection of the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative (PFI) at the Kano State Agricultural Supply Company (KASCO), Kano.
The Governor said the initiative has reduced corruption in the system, created about 200 jobs and encouraged farmers to increase their productivity.
“In this programme, the price is stable and is much better. Farmers already know the price. So the initiative is a good one and as a result, we are expecting a new line in the next two weeks.
“The issue of subsidy was what killed fertiliser production in Nigeria. You sit down in the house instead of going to the farm,” he said.
Governor Ganduje
Earlier, President of Fertiliser Producer and Suppliers Association of Nigeria, Mr Thomas Etuh said KASCO was selected among the fertiliser blending company due to their capacity.
He disclosed that KASCO got about N20 billion worth of goods for the production of the input and are expected to make a return of N2 billion in six months.
He discarded concerns that the fertiliser may be adulterated, adding that there are mechanisms, such as the whistle-blower line that afford farmers opportunity to call a relevant agency in case of any sharp practices.
Differentiating between the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme and the presidential initiative, Etuh explained that while farmers can buy as much as the possible quantity of fertilisers, the GES scheme limited farmers to only two bags.
In his remarks, KASCO Managing Director, Bala Inuwa said the facility was set up in 1981 by the World Bank to blend fertiliser for the farmers and agro-dealers.
He explained that the presidential initiative has created more jobs and raw materials for the fertiliser processing plant.
According to him, the firm currently engages about 600 staffs, who are running on three shifts, adding that both off-takers and farmers are excited with the initiative.
Inuwa, who lamented that prior to the programme, the firm was unable to meet up with farmers, demand revealed that the State Assembly had ordered procurement of about 50, 000 Metric Tonnes of the input to be distributed to farmers.
He said the state lawmakers instructed the ministry to release N5 billion for the implementation.
”In Kano state, we have about 44 local governments and there are 60 shops ready to sell the commodity. We load about 60 trailers daily and we are serious about improving our capacity,” he added.
Source: The Nation
