Farmers across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory are set to receive tractors at a subsidised rate as the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari revealed that the ministry will receive 500 tractors assembled by the John Deere Group.
The expected tractors are the first batch of 2,000 tractors that the federal government has contracted John Deere Group to supply to the country this year. as part of the contact, Nigeria will receive the 2,000 tractors yearly for the next five years. This followed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the ministry on behalf of the country with John Deere Group. It is also part of efforts to encourage an improvement of mechanised farming in nigeria,so as to increase production, and achieve food and nutrition security.
The initiative aims at catalysing farming activities and fortifying the nation’s food and nutrition security in line with President Bola Tinubus emergency declaration on food security.
The minister’s assertion was disclosed by the Acting Director FMA&FS, Ezeaja Ikemefuna on Wednesday in Abuja stating that John Deere would deliver 500 tractors by the end of May and the rest in September 2024.
Kyari explained that the tractors would be accessible, available, and affordable for small, large-scale, and cooperative farmers across the country to increase agricultural yields and improve food and nutrition security through mechanisation.
In addition to that, he expressed the hope that the 2.15 million bags of fertilizers to the tune of N100bn donated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would increase food production capabilities as well as encourage price stabilization in the agricultural sector.
Kyari added that the ministry had received the handing-over letter and would commence the distribution of the various assorted fertilizers as soon as locations where they are warehoused are made available to the ministry. Hear him, The donation would be judiciously utilized and delivered to the intended farmers as soon as we get the locations which I am sure is spread across the country, we will swing into action.
