Federal Capital Territory Administration pledges to revamp Agriculture in Abuja
Hudu Yakubu, Abuja.
The Mandate Secretary for the Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat in the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Mallam Abubakar Ibrahim, has given assurances of the Administration’s commitment to revamp agriculture in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital. This is geared towards the attainment of food security.
Mallam Abubakar stated this during an interactive session with newsmen on the plans by the Secretariat to support agricultural development in the FCT.
According to him, the Secretariat, which is under the supervision of the Honorable Minister of State FCT, Dr Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu, has been working hard to lay a solid foundation that will ensure that the agricultural programmes of the
Secretariat achieve the desired result.
The agricultural sector, he noted, has become a focal point of the Grassroot Developmental initiatives of the Administration in view of its pivotal role in facilitating the uplifting of the socio-economic wellbeing of the growing populace of the FCT.
“You will recall that under my coordination, the Secretariat undertook a needs assessment survey in the six Area Councils with the aim of having first hand information on the areas that require urgent government intervention.
“The outcome of the exercise has given us an informed guide on the actions that we are now taking” said Mallam Abubakar.
On the issue of abattoir management , the Mandate Secretary disclosed that the regular consultations with stakeholders such as Area Council Authorities and butchers are yielding positive results as the issue of use of tyres to roast meat, unhygienic meat-handling processes as well as poor sanitary conditions are being addressed.
“One of the major challenges we had encountered was the accumulation of high water bills, which affected water supply in the Abattoirs.
“This has now been resolved as all outstanding payments have been settled . “Portable water supply is now available for cleaning.
“In the same vein, the Secretariat now carries out regular evacuation of abattoir waste, thereby addressing the issue of environmental pollution.
“Our priority in addressing this issue is to convert the waste to energy. To this end, within the year, we plan to establish biogas stations, first at the Karu Abattoir and then the other Abattoirs across the FCT,” Mallam Abubakar explained.
Speaking on the provision of agricultural inputs, the Secretary emphasized that the Secretariat is working hard to ensure that
agricultural inputs provided by government get to the real farmers:
“Through our zonal offices and extension agents, the Secretariat has been able to obtain a comprehensive and reliable data of farmers in the FCT.
“The data collected indicated the needs of the farmers. So our input support will target their specific areas of needs.”
The Mandate Secretary used the opportunity to also call on farmers to be guided by the climate prediction forecast, which the Secretariat had in conjunction with the Nigerian Metrological Agency (NiMeT) shared with farmers in the six Area Councils.
He added that the Secretariat will step up its campaign to sensitize farmers of measures to prevent erosion and flooding in their farms.
While reacting to the issue of complementary support of the private sector in developing agriculture, Mallam Abubakar acknowledged the contributions of organizations such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) as well as other renowned institutions for their support, which has helped to, not only boost food production but, create jobs for the teeming population in the FCT.
“In line with the policy of the Federal Government on promoting private sector participation in development, our doors will be open for genuine collaboration towards achieving our collective desire for the elimination of hunger and economic empowerment through agriculture,” Abubakar concluded.
Edited by Amaka E. Nliam
