Jigawa is  Largest Producer of Wheat in Nigeria, Says Governor Badaru

Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano

The Jigawa State Governor, Mr. Muhammad Badaru Abubakar, has boasted that his state is the largest producer of wheat in the whole country.
Abubakar stated this yesterday at Wheat Farmers’ Yield Championship that was organised by Flour Milling Association of Nigeria (FMAN), in Kano.
He attributed the feat to the commitment of the state government, under his stewardship, to agricultural development.
The governor, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Wheat Farming, Mr. Yasa’a Wada, revealed that Jigawa had produced over 700 hectares of wheat, out of the 2,000 cultivated this year across the country.
The event was organised to honor some wheat farmers who produced larger output this cultivating season.
He also stated that his administration introduced a unique wheat seed that was named after him, Muhammad Badaru Abubakar (MBA) Merger.
Abuakar revealed that the seed, after undergoing thorough research processes at Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI), has now become the best in wheat farming in Nigeria.n
He said: “Apart from our commitment in wheat farming, we have also excelled in production of all crops, aimed at positioning the state in a high pedestal of agricultural revolution in Nigeria.
“Our commitment in wheat production made us produced a unique seed, named Muhammad Badaru Abubakar Merger. It is the best in this country now,” he said.
In his remarks earlier, National Programme Manager, FMAN Wheat Development Programme, Dr. Aliyu Ismail, said that the company is committed to sustainably expand wheat production in the country.
According to him, part of the commitment is the cultivation of 504 demonstration farms across 15 northern states, aimed at providing training on good agronomic practices to 150,000 farmers under CBN.
He added that the company had expanded direct outgrow programme with inputs loans to cover over 2,000 farmers in seven states, namely Kano, Jigawa, Sokoto, Kebbi, Kaduna, Bauchi, and Gombe.
Ismail also stated that FMAN had purchased 20,000 tons of wheat valued at about N4 billion over the past five years, adding that it signed MoU each year with Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria (WFAN) to buy any quantity of wheat available at an attractive price based on farmer yields.
The beneficiaries expressed appreciation to FMAN for what they described as “taking our wheat production to another level.”
“With the support of FMAN, especially the loans and inputs they provided to us, I have now become financially ok,” said a beneficiary, Mai Unguwa Danmati.
Danmati added: “We have been better after we have collaborated with FMAN. However, I appealed to FMAN to incorporate more farmers in the scheme.”