The Wheat Farmers, Processors, and Marketers Association of Nigeria have unveiled plans to cultivate approximately 77,000 hectares of farmland during the upcoming dry season for wheat cultivation.
Wing Commander Shuaibu Hamza (Rtd), the President of the Association, made this announcement recently during a meeting of Commodity Association Presidents in Abuja.
Highlighting the preparations, Hamza noted that there are already more than 20,000 farmers eagerly awaiting government support in terms of inputs, financing, and security to embark on cultivation during the impending dry season.
The association’s focus is to elevate wheat production within the country, and Hamza stressed the importance of creating an enabling environment by offering incentives, equipment, farm inputs, and security to farmers.
“We as an association have identified about 77,000 hectares of land for wheat cultivation for dry season farming. The bulk of this land is new, about 40,000 hectares of this land is in Niger State, and we have over 20,000 registered farmers on standby to cultivate,” Hamza stated.
The historical context of Nigeria’s wheat production was also highlighted. Hamza explained that the introduction of foreign wheat varieties during the colonial era caused significant disruption to Nigeria’s indigenous wheat varieties, which were well-adapted to the local climate. This shift resulted in challenges due to the differences in weather conditions.
Hamza expressed optimism about the ongoing efforts by designated research institutes. These institutes have developed four distinct wheat varieties that have been successfully tested in various locations, yielding satisfactory results.
“The National Institute for Wheat Research in Lake Chad have come up with four varieties of wheat; there are two varieties for rain-fed farming and two others for irrigation,” Hamza elaborated.
He further emphasized the promising outcomes from testing these varieties in Kano state, where both rain-fed and irrigation trials showed positive performance.
The revival of indigenous wheat varieties, combined with modern research and cultivation practices, presents an encouraging opportunity for Nigeria to enhance its wheat production capacity.
The efforts of the Wheat Farmers, Processors, and Marketers Association of Nigeria, along with collaboration from research institutions, are pivotal steps towards achieving sustainable and productive wheat cultivation that can contribute to both local consumption and potential exports in the future.
