Group calls on FG to subsidise farming implements for farmers

By Aminu Garko, Kano

President of Dawanau International Grains Market, Kano State, Alhaji Muntaka Isa, has called on the Federal Government to provide subsidised farming implements to farmers, to ensure the production of assorted foodstuff  in the country.

Isa made the call while speaking with journalists in Kano on Wednesday.

According to him, the provision of enough and qualitative farm inputs to farmers at subsidised rates would give room for massive production of foodstuff.

He explained that Nigeria is blessed with vast land for farming, but high cost of farming inputs and inadequate utilisation of the vast available land were the major challenges bedeviling the development of agriculture.

“I strongly appeal to the Federal Government to urgently provide adequate and modern farm inputs at subsidised rates to farmers with the aim of ensuring food security.

“We are blessed with vast lands to produce assorted food crops for both local and export consumption but inability of farmers to access farming implements is affecting the growth of production.

“We believe if inputs are subsidised during the farming season it can still bring down the price of food commodities.

“Many farmers cannot access the tractors because they were given to some political farmers.

“Let the government make available modern farming implements to our rural farmers and see how many assorted tones of foodstuffs would be produced,” he said.

He noted that the association had taken bold steps in ensuring that the prices of commodities were slashed, to address the hike in commodity prices.

“The association’s decision to slash the prices was also to boost sales as dealers in the International market had been lamenting low patronage for some time now.

“If you go round the market now, you will notice that the prices of grains such as maize, guinea corn, millet and beans have been reduced compared to what was obtained here about two weeks ago.

“A bag of maize now sells for about N53,000, as against the old price of N60,000, while that of guinea corn now sells for N49,000, as against the former price of N55,000, depending on the quality.

“Also a bag of millet which used to sell for N60,000 now costs N53,000 and that of beans now costs between N85,000 and N90,000, as against the old price of between N95,000 and N100,000, depending on quality,” Muttaka said.

He also disclosed that a bag of soya beans now sells for N65,000 as against N68,000 before, while a bag of sesame seed which used to sell for N225,000 now costs N220,000.

He further said that a big bag of local rice which was hitherto sold for between N110,000 and N115,000 was now being sold for between N95,000 and N100,000 while that of wheat now sells for N60,000 as against N63,000.