The Federal Government, on Friday, announced the distribution of agricultural inputs to farmers in Abia, Kebbi and Yobe states for the cultivation of crops on over 340 hectares of farmlands in the three states.

It said the move was part of efforts to ensure the availability of staple food for citizens across the country amid dwindling global agricultural resources and food shortages.

President Bola Tinubu, in July 2023, declared a state of emergency on food.

To complement the President’s food security directive through an empowerment programme to cushion the effects of the high cost of living, the National Agricultural Land Development Authority initiated the distribution of agricultural inputs to assist farmers maximise crop cultivation for improved yields and increased food production.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, NALDA said each of the accredited beneficiaries of the empowerment programme received bags containing high-grade fertilisers, herbicides and improved maize seeds for Abia and Yobe states, while Kebbi farmers received improved rice seeds.

It stated that in Abia, beneficiaries from all Local Governments gathered at the NALDA Institute of Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship, IsiAla Okpu community in Osisioma Local Government Area to receive the empowerment packages from officials of the agency, led by their Executive Secretary, Paul Ikonne.

Ikonne, while addressing the farmers in their local dialect, highlighted the essence of the empowerment programme.

He was quoted as saying, “The government is making sure that you can produce what you’ll eat by providing you inputs.

“The essence of what we are doing here today is to ensure Nigerians understand the importance of farming, make sure we produce what we eat and to reduce the price of food in the market. We are expecting nothing less than 340 hectares to be cultivated by these farmers.”

Ikonne assured the farmers that NALDA would regularly continue to support them with agricultural inputs, stating that the contact details of all the beneficiaries had been captured in the agency’s database for follow-up assistance and more farmers would be added to the list from time to time.

The NALDA boss said the empowerment programme is a fulfillment of President Bola Tinubu’s promise to ensure Nigerians get enough food at affordable prices.

The NALDA administrator in Kebbi State, Bashar Bunza, led the team that distributed the inputs to beneficiaries from the benefiting Local Governments.

The Chairman, Ngaski Local Government Area, Manir Abubakar, who participated in the distribution exercise, appreciated NALDA for the kind gesture.

In Yobe State, the NALDA team led by the Director of Finance, Suleiman Lawal, distributed the inputs to beneficiaries in Gashua, Bade Local Government Area.

Beneficiaries were drawn from six LGs of the state namely Bade, Yusufari, Jakusko, Nguru, Karasuwa, and Machina.