Northern Farmers Begins Training On Soil Health Scheme In Kano 

By Salihu Ali, Kano 

 

 

 

Farmers from Northern Nigeria, have begun training on a new farming technique designed to boast soil fertility and improve yields.

 

The stakeholders workshop on the implementation of Nigeria farmers’s soil health card scheme was Organized by the Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Agriculture and food Security.

 

Addressing the stakeholders, the Minister of State Agriculture and Food Security Dr. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi explained that, the sensitization and validation workshop on the introduction of soil health card to Nigerian farmers was aimed at improving farming skills to farmers, ensure the protection of soil and injecting heathy modern techniques to farming.

 

Represented by the Director

Department of Agricultural land and climate change management services of the federal ministry of Agriculture Mr. Oshadiya Olanipekun, the Minister said, “this sensitization workshop in the long run we want to improve yield that is the major thing.”

 

“Ideally what we do has always been this blanket application of fertilizer and the two major fertilizers we have are the NPK, 20 10:10 and the 15:15:15 but when we ensure that farmers carry out a soil fertility status before planting, they get the actual status and would be able to meet accordingly the requirement and crop value chain.”

 

He added that, “We are going to embark on serious advocacy, sensitisation programmes and capacity building in order to ensure that it goes to the grassroots.”

 

The National Coordinator of Agro-Climate Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscape ACReSAL Abdulhamid Umar represented by the Kano Coordinator Dr Dahiru Mohammad Hashim said the sensitization would play will address issues of land degradation and Climate Change with a view to achieve maximum food security.

 

He noted that, the proposed action plan, focusing on balanced fertilizer application and enhanced soil fertility, aligns with the organization’s broader objectives of enhancing climate resilience and boosting agricultural productivity.

 

“In this regard, I would like to highlight the intervention of the ACReSAL Project aimed to restore 1 million hectares of degraded land by 2028 through afforestation projects and strategic collaborations.

 

“One significant partnership is with the FAO, targeting the recovery of 350,000 hectares of degraded land. In Kano alone, we have successfully recovered 21,261 hectares through initiatives like Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), orchard establishment, institutional planting, forest conservation, and enrichment planting of native species.”

 

He urged the participants to make adequate utilization of the training geared towards enhancing yield production in the Country.

 

The workshop attracted participants from Various State across the Northern Nigeria.

 

 

 

 

 

Oyenike Oyeniyi