The Federal Government has said it will establish one-stop shop agro-input centres in the 774 local governments in the country.
The initiative became imperative to ensure that agricultural inputs, such as fertiliser, tractor rental service among others are made readily available, accessible and affordable for all farmers nationwide.
The Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Bukar Tijani stated this at the inauguration of 62 centres built by the Federal Government at Wushishi, Niger State.
The Minister added that this was part of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) aimed at strengthening the nation’s food security programme.
Tijani, who restated that at least one-stop shop centre would be built in each local government in the country, with each having facilities for about 500 tonnes storage capacity for fertiliser, seeds and agro-chemicals as well as provide tractor hire service, primary processing and extension services.
Tijani said:”The Ministry is very much mindful of the serious impediment of inaccessibility of good quality agricultural inputs such as fertilizer, agro-chemicals, seeds and seedlings, livestock feeds, veterinary drugs, tractor hiring, primary processing and extension services by farmers in a bid to maximising aggregate agricultural production output for the nation.
“This impediment as well as the Federal Government’s preparation to withdraw from direct procurement and distribution of all agricultural inputs informed the decision of the Ministry to propose the establishment of at least a one-stop shop Agro-Input Centre in each Local Government Area of the Federation by the year 2015.”
According to him, the centres which will be jointly supported by states and local governments through operational support tools like tractors and ancillary services will also provide market information services, promote private sector investment in viable commercial agriculture and enhance food security and enhance the activities of the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) programme.