Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima has disclosed that his administration has expended over thirty billion naira to promote agricultural production in the state.
The pointed out that agriculture held the key to job creation in the state and also a solution to the Boko Haram menace in the area.
He said, “Agriculture offers opportunity to our people in productive venture and it (we) has to be in the whole value chain of agricultural production process.”
Governor said, ”We have investment worth over N30 billion in agricultural machinery and the whole mantra is for an increase in yield. In Nigeria, we produce five tonnes of tomato per hectare, in England, they produce 50 tonnes per hectare.”
He further explained that a cow in Nigeria produces one litre of milk per day, while a cow in Germany would produced 40 to 60 litres per day.
“So, the whole mantra is to increase yield and we have to invest in modern technology, improve seed varieties, fertiliser and other modern agricultural practices. We have over 50 combined harvesters, we have 700 planters, right now, we have about 600 rice mills”, he revealed.
Governor Shettima also revealed that the state government had established 10 industries, including a tomato processing plant as part of initiatives to take advantage of the core value chain in the agricultural production process.
He said, the plants would take advantage of the huge quantum of tomato and other raw materials produced in the state and its environs.
He further disclosed that the state had also invested in poultry production that would be used to implement the government’s school feeding programme.
“We just imported 3,000 units of Anglo-Sahelian goats from Niger and Chad that are superior to our local varieties and we are buying 100 Kalahari South African goats.”
