Bauchi Govt Flags-off Aerial Spray against Quelea Birds, Releases N45m

•Inaugurates new internal revenue board to improve IGR

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

The Bauchi state Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, has  flagged-off aerial spray to control the devastating effect of Quelea birds on farmlands in Toro, Bauchi, Jama’are, Misau, Kirfi and Alkaleri local government areas of the state.

 Mohammed while performing the flag-off ceremony at the Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa International airport Bauchi yesterday, stated that the sum of N45 million had been released for the procurement of Agrochemicals and other equipment.

He said this was in response to a recent outbreak of insects and pests in farmlands in Kirfi, Alkaleri and some local government areas of the state, explaining that it was to ensure timely and effective control of the outbreak due to its emergency need.

Represented by the state Commissioner of Agriculture, Prof. Madugu Yalams, the governor described agriculture as the backbone of Bauchi economy, saying that the sector employs over 75 per cent population of the State.

According to him, in that regard, his government has since inception, made a lot of efforts towards transforming the agricultural sector from being a way of life of the people to a business that will enhance the earning power of the teeming farming families.

The governor added that the transformation had been carried out in order to attract investors, donor agencies and development partners both within and outside the country.

He said that the various agricultural intervention programmes in the state were meant to restructure the sector for the betterment of farmers and the entire citizens as well as create an enabling environment for investors.

The governor added that the agricultural transformation policies of the federal government had made positive impact in the sector, leading to increased yield and production, especially grains.

Mohammed further explained that the yield increase has attracted Quelea birds and other pests in the 12 frontline States of Northern Nigeria, including Bauchi State.

He said the bird is one of the most dangerous agricultural pests devastating crop production, threatening food security not only in Nigeria but Africa in General.  He noted that Scientists have estimated the number of Quelea birds at around 100 million, thus, a flock of 2 million Quelea birds can destroy 20 tonnes of grains in just one day.

The governor revealed that the flocks of Quelea birds attack and destroy millions of hectares of agricultural farms and fields annually, leading to substantial grain deficiency in the country.

“These birds are migratory in nature, therefore, the only method of controlling these destructive pests is by aerial spray of chemicals as well as ground control by the State Ministry of Agriculture fumigation team,” the governor emphasised.

The government while informing the affected communities where the aerial spray will take place, with the plane flying at a lower altitude not to panic, also warned them against eating any of the dead birds because they are highly poisonous.

The communities where the aerial spray will take place are Gobirawa, Mai-Ari, Garin Na Allah, Kotarko in Alkaleri local government area area as well as Kogin Sallah A, Toro 1 and Kogin Sallah B and others within Toro Local Government.

He said communities in Kirfi which include Kworin Lariski, Bala Lakawa as well as Gadau and Banja in Itas-Gadau LG are part of the aerial spray.

The commissioner further informed that communities in Jama’are LG as well as Maladumba Dam, Kari bridge among others in Misau local government area including wire Dam in Bauchi LG, Galala Dam and Dugurna communities have been affected by the Quelea birds.

Meanwhile, as part efforts to boost the internally generated revenue of the state, the Bauchi State Government has tasked the new members of the board of Internally Generated Revenue Service to work hard in meeting the expectations of the people of the state in terms of more revenue generation.

The State Commissioner of Finance and Economic Development, Dr Yakubu Adamu who inaugurated members of the board on behalf of the state government in Bauchi yesterday said that members of the board were carefully selected by the governor based on their expertise, competence, knowledge and contribution to the development of the state.

He told the new board members to see their selection as a privilege to serve the state, pointing out that they should put in their best in the new task ahead of them and see it as means of paying their dues to the state.

“If you will recall when we came in August 2023, his Excellency mandated us to finance some of the projects he intended to undertake in Bauchi state and an estimate was raised of almost a N100 billion naira.

“Our first meeting we had, we sat down with the governor and he told us that he does not want the projects to be financed with the Fully Allocated Cost(FAC) , but with that of the internally generated revenue.

“ His desire is for us to be generating between N5 billion to N7 billion monthly, that is why a lot of transformation is taking place in the board,” he said.

The commissioner urged them to always feel free to give counsel to the state government where necessary, saying that they have the support of the government.

Responding, the State Executive Chairman of the Board, Mu’azu Usman, said that the target given to the board was realisable as they vision of the board was to make Bauchi financially sustainable through revenue generation.

According to him, since the inception of the administration, the IGR of the state has greatly improved, from  N6.5 billion in 2018, to above N30 billion.