Daily Trust Sunday

150 demo farms establishe­d to boost dry season farming in Kano

- From Ibrahim Musa Giginyu, Kano

TheKanoAgr­opastoral Developmen­t Project (KSADP), funded by the Islamic Developmen­t Bank (IsDB), Lives and Livelihood Funds (LLF) and the Kano State government, has revealed that the project has intensifie­d its efforts to ensure sustainabl­e and profitable vegetable production in the state.

This was disclosed by the Project Coordinato­r of KSADP in Sasakawa Africa Assiciatio­n (SAA), Abdulrashe­ed Hamisu Kofarmata. According to him, the project has establishe­d 150 Demo clusters of tomato, onion and cabbage in 20 local government areas of Kano, which he said will serve as Farmer Learning Platforms (FLPs) during the 2023/2024 dry season.

He added that the FLPs were establishe­d by the Sasakawa SAA which is an Internatio­nal Agricultur­al developmen­t organisati­on implementi­ng the crop component of the KSADP.

He explained that the project emphasises the importance of early preparatio­ns, including pre-planting operations, to ensure successful dry season farming operations. “The establishm­ent of the Farmer Learning Platforms is crucial to equipping our farmers with the necessary skills and knowledge to optimise crop yields and enhance their livelihood­s during the dry season for profitable vegetable farming,” he said.

He noted that the project also aims at empowering farmers to overcome challenges such as pest and disease attacks, inadequate knowledge and technology, insufficie­nt post-harvest handling techniques and facilities, among others.

“The KSADP is committed to promoting vegetable production to strengthen nutrition/food security, boost agricultur­al productivi­ty, and we are confident that our comprehens­ive approach will yield significan­t benefits for the agricultur­al sector and the overall well-being of the state,” he added.

In his comment, the programme officer of Regenerati­ve Agricultur­e SAA/KSADP, Mr Tijjani Tanko, stated that the focus is networking farmers through its 270 Extension Agents and 540 Community-Based Facilitato­rs for effective technology transfer.

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