Kebbi State sets to produce over 1million tons of rice in 2016 Dry season farming.

The Kebbi State Deputy Governor, Alhaji Samaila Yombe has disclosed that the government has begun consultation with rice and wheat farmers ahead of the commencement of the 2016 dry season farming aim to fully mobilise the farmers to harvest more than one million tons of rice at the end of the dry season.

Yombe revealing this today said that the government had commenced the verification of the 200,000 dry season farmers in the state with a view to providing relevant assistance to them ahead of the season, officially commencing in the next two weeks as other finance institutions and other key stakeholders are also be contacted.

The Deputy Governor told the farmers that modalities had been completed for Millers to purchase the commodity directly from farmers and assured that all registered farmers would receive seedlings, chemicals and extension services from the government.

Yombe further disclosed that efforts had been made between the state and federal government to ensure that petrol is provided at cluster farming centres for constant water supply and ensure that its scarcity did not affect production,’’ he said.

The state Chairman, Rice Farmers Association, Alhaji Abubakar Augie, during his remarks,called on the government to ensure uninterrupted supply of petrol to the farmers during the season.

While the Programme Manager, Kebbi Agricultural and Rural Development Agency, Alhaji Sanusi Ilo, advised farmers to form cooperatives in order to access Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) loan for commercial production of the commodity.