Kebbi Allocates 10,000 Hectares For Rice Production

The governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu

The governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, has approved the allocation of 10,000 hectares of land to the management of AITEO Energy Resources Company for the take-off of rice production in the state.


This is contained in a press release signed by the chief press secretary to the governor, Alhaji Abubakar Dakingari, and made available to LEADERSHIP in Birnin Kebbi, yesterday.

The statement said that the aim was to boost rice production and improve the economic future of Kebbi State, and stated that a delegation of the company, led by Alhaji Abubakar Tambuwal, had talks with Governor Bagudu and assured him of their willingness to cultivate 10,000 hectares of land in the state.
The leader of the delegation, Tambuwal, promised that the company would open an office next week in Birnin Kebbi, adding that the recruitment of staff would soon  commence.

“We will also commence the cultivation of rice and processing and sale of milled rice in the state,” the statement quoted Tambuwal as saying.

He expressed gratitude to the government and people of the state for the immediate release of land for the  take off of the company and also announced the immediate employment of out growers to assist the state to generate more revenue and empower farmers.

The initiatives adopted by the Kebbi State Government to prioritise and revamp the agriculture sector have been commended by the state chairman of Agro and Inputs Dealers Association of Kebbi State, Alhaji Alhasssan Usman Shiroro. The commendation was made by the chairman while addressing newsmen in Birnin Kebbi. He further said that the present administration has done a lot for the farmers, mostly rice farmers, by giving them loan and farming inputs in the state, adding that the efforts of Governor Bagudu in providing farming tools and fertiliser to the farmers in the state will go along way in achieving food security and employment to the youths.

“He gave us fertilisers at a subsidised rate; he provided some needed chemicals and also, at the wake of the fuel scarcity, made the commodity available to us,” Shiroro said.

The chairman also opined that arrangements have been concluded with their members from various part of the country to come out with a blueprint in ensuring the sustainability of agriculture in Nigeria and support President Muhammadu Buhari’s economic policy on diversification. Subsequently, he appealed to the federal government to revisit and consider the payment of the N50 billion debt on the growth enhancement scheme (GES) which was initiated by the immediate past administration.