As farmers begin cropping activities, Bauchi, Gombe and Jigawa State Governments have approved 50 per cent subsidy on fertiliser prices to ease access to the commodity.
A check by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bauchi, Gombe and Jigawa showed that the sale of the commodity at the subsidised rate to the farmers had begun.
The NPK brand of fertilisers is being sold between N15,000 and N19,000 as against the former price of N27,000.
In Jigawa, the state government procured 6,000 metric tonnes of fertilisers for sale to the farmers.
The Chairman, Fertiliser Distribution Committee, Sen. Mustapha Makama, said that Gov. Umar Namadi would inaugurate fertiliser distribution exercise on July 17.
He said the commodity had been distributed to the designated sale outlets to make it accessible to the farmers across the 27 local government areas of the state.
“The NPK brand of fertilisers would be sold sold at N16,000 per bag.
“The gesture is to make fertiliser affordable and accessible to the farmers, especially those who could not afford it due to financial constraint.
“The committee’s role is crucial in facilitating the timely distribution of subsidised fertiliser which will help cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal.
“We understand the financial constraint being faced by the farmers. Our goal is to alleviate their burden by providing subsidised fertiliser by making it available.
“We aim to empower farmers and encourage increased agricultural output, ultimately contributing to food security,” he said.
According to him, the committee will ensure fair and equal distribution of the commodity across the state.
Similarly, the Gombe State Government had pegged prices of NPK brand of fertilisers at N19,000 per bag.
The state governor, Inuwa Yahaya, on June 19, inaugurated the sale of the subsidised fertiliser to the farmers across the state.
Yahaya said the state government expended over N2.8 billion on procurement of the commodity.
NAN checks at the Gombe Main market showed that prices of the commodity varied depending on its quality.
A 25 kilogramme bag of the NPK-15-15-15 was sold between N24,000 and N27,000 while NPK 20-10-10 sold between N14,000 and N28,000, respectively.
A 50kg bag of Urea brand of fertilisers is sold between N21,000 and N25,000.
A cross section of the farmers lauded the ward-to-ward fertiliser distribution model adopted by the government.
They described the gesture as “commendable”, adding that it would enhance access to the commodity and encourage productivity.
A rice grower in Nafada, Musa Alhaji, said the gesture assisted farmers by cutting down cost of production.
This, he said, would enable them to save more money, source for other inputs and increase their production output.
“Some farmers bought the subsidised fertilisers which saved them between N5,000 and N9,000 per bag, depending its quality.
“So for every 10 bags of subsidised fertiliser, a farmer could save between N50,000 and N90,000; this is good no matter how small.
Another farmer, Ibrahim Danladi, said that he had benefited from the similar gesture in the previous seasons.
Danladi urged the state government to expand the scope of farmer support services to mobilise participation in the programme.
For Yusuf Abba and Hannatu Bitrus, the gesture has enhanced farmers’ access to the commodity.
Bitrus, however, urged women cooperative societies to ensure that their members benefitted from subsequent fertiliser distribution exercises.
Some farmers in Bauchi have also lauded the state government for making fertilisers accessible in the state.
A farmer, Rilwanu Bala, said the government achieved tremendous feat in making the commodity accessible and affordable to the farmers.
The gesture, he said, would encourage farmers to increase their production output.
“Fertiliser is now available and affordable to the farmers. We anticipate bumper harvest,” he said.
Another farmer, Ja’afaru Dauda, lauded Gov. Bala Mohammed for providing the commodity on loan to the workers.
“The action will encourage more civil servants to go into agriculture, enhance food security and wealth creation in the state,” he said.
