Gombe – Gombe State Government says it has spent N2.7 billion on the procurement of fertiliser for farmers in the state to promote farming activities in 2017 farming season
Alhaji Dahiru Biri, the Commissioner for Agriculture, made this known in Gombe on Sunday when addressing journalists on the activities of his ministry.
According to Biri the state government has concluded plans to distribute fertiliser to farmers with the cropping season on the underway.
He further said government had concluded plan to subsidise the prices of fertiliser to farmers, following the approval by the Gov. Ibrahim Dankwambo.
“Government has made adequate arrangements to distribute the fertiliser to the farmers immediately,” he said.
The commissioner said that a bag of fertiliser cost the state government N5,000, adding that government would decide the amount it would be sold to farmers.
According to him, the state government has been facing challenge in getting the supply of NPK fertiliser from the Federal Government, through the 11 fertiliser blending companies in the country.
According to him, so far, only 3,000 out of the 10, 000 metric tonnes of NPK being expected in the state have been supplied with an approval to lift additional seven metric tonnes.
“We have earmarked the 10 metric tonnes of Urea in stock but we have to delay the distribution until we get the 60 per cent of the required NPK.”
The commissioner conducted journalists round the ministry’s storage facilities where 3,000 metric tonnes of NPK and 10, 000 metric tonnes of Urea fertilizer were stored for onward distribution to farmers.