From: Tunde Omolehin, Sokoto
The Sokoto State Agricultural Development Project (SADP) has said it would engage more extension workers to improve the agricultural potential of the state.
SADP’s Project Manager, Alhaji Ibrahim Malami, stated this in an interview with Daily Sun, in Sokoto.
Malami said the state government had employed 67 additional agricultural extension workers to boost agriculture in the state.
According to him, the efforts are geared toward encouraging increased agricultural production in line with the drive to diversify the economy.
He also said that the state government was working toward achieving the global standard of one extension worker to 400 farmers in state.
Malami noted that the state government was targeting to employ 300 extension workers before the end of 2018.
“The state government accords top priority to agriculture because it provides jobs to the people and food security for the nation.”
He said that SADP was partnering with Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR), Zaria, for the training new extension workers and retraining of the old ones on modern agronomic practices.
The project manager said that the agency also partnered with IAR on the production of improved seedlings, relevant to the climatic condition of the state.
He said the seedlings would be distributed to various categories of farmers in the 23 local government areas of the state.
Malami said that during his two-year stewardship, five project vehicles were refurbished while 20 motorcycles were distributed to extension workers to facilitate coverage of the rural areas.
The project manager said he cleared all workers’ genuine liabilities, promoted 28 senior officers besides routine training which was absent in the past 18 years.
He commended the governor of the state, AlhajiAminu Tambuwal for his support and pledged to evolve more initiatives to rejuvenate agricultural practices to modern yielding business across the state.