No fewer than 5,104 dry-season farmers in Enugu State have benefited from the Agricultural Transformation Agenda Support Programme Phase One (ATASP-1) water pumps for dry-season irrigation farming.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the dry season farmers, drawn from 52 farming clusters (or farming cooperatives), are within the Adani and Omor farming zones.
The state’s Commissioner for Agriculture and Agro-industrialization, Mr. Patrick Ubru, presented the 52 water pumping machines to the farmers in Enugu.
Ubru said that the gesture was just the first step to ensuring that Enugu State became the hub of food production in the country.
He said that the Gov. Peter Mbah-led administration had resolved to support farmers and subsidise every effort to ensure food production and quality value-chain addition on farm produce in the state.
“More gestures to ensure you succeed are coming, even as we are going to distribute inputs very soon and give real-time guidance and supervision to ensure you get it right.
“We want you to utilise all you have learned in terms of good agronomy practices from ATASP to increase your yield this season, as the state government has a target of one million metric tons of rice.
“So, we are looking at you people producing at least five tons per hectare of rice; as a state that has its own rice brand, we (the state government) will off-take all you produce and process.
“For those producing improved maize varieties, our poultry farmers are already waiting to buy any maize produced in the state, and the headache of the market for your produce has been taken away from you.’’
The commissioner assured the farmers that tractors would be rolled out in the state very soon to make their farming easier, and they would cover more terrain or landmass.
“The state government, through the initiative of our amiable governor, will be providing you with tractors that will improve your farming work, make it easier, and make expansion highly possible.
“We have a talk-and-do governor who has taken the pain to conclude arrangements for providing tractors to farmers in the state; our tractors are on the way and will be available very soon,” he said.
Speaking, Dr. Romanus Egba, the Program Coordinator, ATASP-1 Adani-Omor Staple Crops Implementation Zone, commended the governor for paying the state’s counterpart fund for the programme.
“It is due to the state participating actively in the programme through counterpart fund payment that we have the opportunity to receive these water pumping machines and other beneficial gestures to come soon.
“So, ATASP-1 is packaging this dry season farming with about 5,104 dry season farmers in Enugu State, who are into rice and maize production; it will be a farmer per hectare of farmland.
“We are also thanking the agriculture-friendly governor for putting huge support and subsidies into agriculture, its value chain, and the entire food production exercise in the state.”
The programme coordinator also urged the farmers to ensure that they are active on the ATASP WhatsApp group platform to receive vital messages, get clear guidance, interact with other farmers, and raise questions and complaints if need be.
“ATASP officials will actively monitor, supervise, and guide the farmers through the WhatsApp group and practically visit farms often; they will support the farmers and their various cluster groups to succeed,” he assured.
One of the beneficiaries, Mr. Titus Ugwu, thanked ATASP-1, Mbah, and the state ministry of agriculture for their overwhelming support for farming activities.
“As a rice farmer, this solar-powered water pumping machine will give adequate irrigation to my rice farm and definitely lead to an increase in yield and a better harvest,” Ugwu said.
Another beneficiary, Mrs. Eunice Okafor, appreciated ATASP for giving genuine support to farmers in terms of agronomy training, providing improved seedlings and inputs, as well as this solar-powered water pumping machine.
The water pumps distributed included 40 solar-powered and 12 petrol-powered easy-to-use water pumping machines. (NAN)
