Kaduna partners World bank on livestock production, increases investment to 10%

The administration of Governor Uba Sani in Kaduna State has commenced the implementation of the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support (L-PRES) project, in partnership with the World Bank.

Salisu Hashim, State Coordinator of L-PRES, who made this known in a press statement, noted that already the administration would be providing counterpart funding for the project for the full take off of the project.

Hashim noted that as part of the implementation of the project, the State had distributed equipment such as fodder choppers, residue crushers, and tricycles to sedentary pastoralist communities and clusters that had been profiled by the project.

The State Coordinator highlighted that L-PRES had upgraded the four grazing reserves in Kaduna State by providing solar-powered boreholes in each of them, reserving land, and supplying seeds for planting animal feed. He emphasised that providing water points will not only minimize farmer-herder conflicts but also increase the quantity and quality of milk production in cattle.

The statement recalled that the Kaduna office of L-PRES had provided a baling machine, a mower, and other supporting equipment to the National Livestock Transformation Program (NLTP) at the Laduga Grazing Reserve. According to Hashim, L-PRES has improved veterinary facilities in Kaduna State and trained veterinarians and other livestock service providers on disease surveillance.

Meanwhile, the Kaduna State Government has said that it is placing high premium on the development of agriculture that will see the sector practising an all year-round farming. In order to achieve the objective, the Government disclosed that 10% of this year’s annual budget had been set aside for various activities outlined in the sector

Governor Uba Sani made this known at the launch of the Dry season Agricultural empowerment programme held at Murtala Square, saying: ‘’Today, we are launching the Dry Season Agricultural Empowerment Program, a game-changing initiative designed to ensure that our farmers can produce food all year round.

”Under this programme, we are distributing 100,000 bags of fertilizers — both NPK and Urea — to enhance soil fertility and boost yields. Kaduna State has also procured 500 power tillers to assist smallholder farmers in land preparation. Over 2,000 knapsack sprayers as well as 10,000 water pumps had been purchased to support irrigation and ensure uninterrupted farming during the dry season.’’