Governor Agbu Kefas of Taraba State is taking a further step in the resolve to improve the practice of agriculture in the state. His government is commencing the distribution of the second batch of tractors to farmers in the state. In the batch, farmers will get 53 compact tractors and 173 small tractors.
The governor who early May pledged to give tractors to farmers in all the 16 local government councils at subsidised rates, distributed the first batch on May 28. In that batch, farmers got 20 compact cabrio tractors and 250 units of mini tractors.
The second batch, the consignment of which is said to be on its way to the state capital, was announced by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Food Security, Professor Nicholas Oliver. He made the announcement at the venue of the meeting of the tractor distribution committee, which was held at the Governor Agbu Kefas Agricultural Mechanization Center in Jalingo.
He said all 20 containers loaded with tractors are expected to arrive in the state within a week.
However, the committee is already working on the applications received from interested cooperative bodies to ensure ease of distribution. According to the commissioner, Governor Kefas did not just subsidise the cost of the tractors, he also allowed for ease of payment. For instance, the small tractors, which market price is N9 million each, are being sold to farmers at N7 million. But the farmer does not have to pay the money at once. The mode of payment is such that the farmer makes a down payment of N4.5 million and then pays the balance of N2.5 million monthly over a period of four years. The big tractor which is N70 million is to be sold to the farmer at N35 million. The intending owner is expected to deposit N 17.5 million, while the remaining amount is paid by instalment of N300,000 monthly over a period of four years.
