The Kano State Agro Pastoral Development Project (KSADP) is set to impact 450,000 smallholder farmers with facilities and inputs in the state.
The Project in a recent release said it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sasakawa Africa to facilitate the intervention.
Deputy Governor of Kano state, Dr. Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, who doubles as the Chair, Project Steering Committee, KSADP, and Vice chairman of Sasakawa Africa, Dr. Amit Roy, signed the pact on behalf of both organizations.
Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) alongside Carter Center’s Global 2000 Program has worked with smallholders under the Agricultural Program in Africa (SG 2000) to help farmers gain access to better farming techniques.
The intervention will include the disbursement of Seeds, Fertilizers, pesticides, post-harvest handling, value addition, and agri-business services, the release signed by the Project Communication Specialist, Ameen K. Yassar revealed.
It will also offer post-harvest handling, value addition, and agri-business services, amongst other efforts to bolster food production, create jobs, and eradicate poverty.
The Deputy Governor said, “KSADP is our flagship project and its aim is to attain food security, increase production and productivity as well as generate employment and more income for our people especially the rural poor.
“Because of our huge population and the fact that majority of our people are farmers, we are determined to take advantage of the technical expertise of Sasakawa to make agriculture a more sustainable and rewarding venture by assisting our farmers with facilities and inputs, and building the capacity of our agricultural extension workers”.
The KSADP-Sasakawa partnership will also see to the training of extension workers.
“It also entails the design and execution of value chain extension training to raise the skills and knowledge of 18, 000 farmer facilitators, 440 processors, 220 fabricators, 1,000 Community Based Extension Staff and 220 frontline extension staff as well as core staff of the KSADP,” the statement read in part.
For an agreed five-year period, KSADP will finance Sasakawa, annually.
SOURCE: AGRONIGERIA
