By Faridat Salifu
Kano State recently launched a $12.3 million agricultural mechanisation programme aimed at modernising smallholder farming, improving food security, and creating sustainable livelihoods for young people.
The deal, signed under the Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project (KSADP), is an amended Memorandum of Understanding with Sasakawa Africa Association, the state’s implementing partner, to provide a broad range of agricultural machinery and post-harvest solutions.
The contract includes the supply of tractors, combine harvesters, planters, transplanters, boom sprayers, solar-powered water pumps, rice milling equipment, onion storage technology, and other land preparation tools.
KSADP State Project Coordinator, Ibrahim Muhammad, said the intervention will shift farmers away from crude implements and toward precision farming technologies that reduce labour and post-harvest losses.
“This is about transforming agriculture from drudgery to opportunity especially for young people who may otherwise abandon farming,” he said.
Funded by the Islamic Development Bank, the Lives and Livelihoods Fund, and the Kano State Government, the project aligns with the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan as well as the Kano State Development Plan.
Kano State Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr. Danjuma Mahmoud, described the agreement as a leap forward in making agriculture more attractive to the state’s growing youth population.
On his part, the Country Director of Sasakawa Africa Association Nigeria, Dr. Godwin Atser, said the renewed partnership marks a new milestone in the state’s agricultural transformation.
“This five-year collaboration has already shown impact,” he said. “With this new phase, we’re scaling up to reach more farmers, introduce smarter practices, and unlock the full economic potential of mechanised agriculture in Kano.”
