The National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) has provided earth dam, and farm inputs to farmers in Azare Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The Executive Secretary, NALDA Paul Ikonne, disclosed this Tuesday in Bauchi during inspection, saying that the earth dam would provide water for about 10,000 animals and irrigation.
He further added that the dam will serve three villages with solar-powered pumping machines that would also be provided to pump water to farms around the communities.
Ikonne stated that the project was aimed at ensuring the availability of water for irrigation and animal husbandry in order to curb farmers/herders clashes in the country.
The representative of the District Head of Gamawa Mohammed Babayo, who spoke on behalf of the farmers while appreciating the government for the dam, called on NALDA to further support farmers in the area with inputs such as improved seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and access roads.
The district head expressed his appreciation to the NALDA that for the first time the villages would be feeling federal presence as all agriculture activities in the area are collective efforts of the farmers.
Responding to this, the NALDA boss commended the enthusiasm of the farmers, he assured them that the agency would make inputs available to them alongside other needed support.
“We will go into good partnership with you if you provide the land, with this one we’ll provide Solar powered pumping machines so that the water can go out to the farms, we have done something like this in Dabiram Dam
“We will be happy to replicate this in another location so that we will have a lot of farmers do dry season farming and all the support that the farmers need President Muhammadu Buhari has mandated NALDA to provide it but for the community that’s ready and I can see that this community is ready” he stated.
Explaining the importance of the dam to the farmers, Ikonne said: “The water you see in the dam now is not rainwater so what it means is that when rain falls you will have enough water for all year-round farming in partnership with NALDA, that is why we here, I’m happy that your community is now ready.”
With the 500 hectares donated by the communities, Ikonne said NALDA would provide additional Earth Dam and pumping machines to further boost irrigation farming in the second location.
He added that President Buhari who is a farmer himself understands the needs of farmers which is why he equipped NALDA in order to impact farmers by providing equipment for land clearing, land preparation, planting, harvesting and making inputs available to the farmers.