From Atiku Sarki, Abuja
The Federal Government has commenced the distribution of processing and post-harvest equipment to farmers and agribusiness groups supported by the Value Chain Development Programme in Nasarawa State, as part of efforts to boost productivity and reduce post-harvest losses.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, disclosed this during the flag-off ceremony in Lafia while on a two-day working visit to the state.
Kyari said the intervention would add value to agricultural produce, empower women and youth farmers, enhance competitiveness and stimulate agribusiness growth in Nasarawa and across the country.
“This intervention will reduce post-harvest losses, support enterprise growth, deepen market participation and expand opportunities for rural employment,” the minister said.
According to him, the programme, implemented in collaboration with the International Fund for Agricultural Development, is designed to address structural challenges in the rice and cassava value chains through integrated investments in production, aggregation, processing, infrastructure, market access and institutional strengthening.
Kyari noted that the initiative aligns with the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy and supports the agricultural transformation agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“Agriculture must deliver results—food for our people, jobs for our youth, income for our farmers and stability for our nation,” he said, adding that under the President’s leadership, agriculture is being repositioned as a modern, market-oriented and private-sector-driven enterprise.
The minister also highlighted the Nasarawa Agro-Commodity Company and the One-Stop Investment Centre as key initiatives strengthening the state’s investment climate, while commending Governor Abdullahi Sule for promoting large-scale cultivation to boost food supply, stabilise prices and create jobs.
“These interventions are creating jobs, stabilising rural incomes and strengthening Nasarawa State’s contribution to national food security,” Kyari said.
In his remarks, Governor Sule said the state government had aligned its agricultural programmes with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu administration to promote economic diversification and wealth creation for farmers.
He said reforms in the sector would empower youth and women, increase production and improve internally generated revenue for the state.
Earlier, the National Programme Coordinator of the FGN/IFAD Value Chain Development Programme, Dr Fatima Aliyu, said the initiative supports rice and cassava smallholder farmers through a value-chain approach to enhance productivity, promote agro-processing and expand access to markets.
Responding on behalf of beneficiaries, the Chairman of the Ashangwa Rice Innovation Platform, Patience Wombo, pledged that the association would properly maintain the facilities provided to ensure increased production, packaging and distribution.
As part of the visit, the minister commissioned several VCDP-supported facilities in Lafia, including rice and garri processing centres in Ashangwa, Gidi Gidi and Agi Alo.
Highlights of the visit included the distribution of agricultural inputs such as tricycles, rice parboiling, milling, de-stoning and colour-sorting machines, digital weighing scales, cassava grating and frying machines, hydraulic pressers and automated framers, as well as a courtesy visit to the governor.