By Matthew Denis
No fewer than 396 Soya beans farmers from across all the Local Government Areas in Kwara State were supplied with farm inputs for the 2019 farming season in Ilorin on Thursday.
This form part of activities of the Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in partnership with the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) and Soya beans farmers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (SBFMAN)
The beneficiaries were supplied with farm inputs including Soya beans seed, fertilizer, Knapsack sprayer, weed control chemicals, insecticide and harvest kits.
Addressing the farmers at the event, Development Finance Officer of CBN, Mr. Biodun Okunola urged them to make judicious use of the inputs given to them.
Okunola who disclosed that Kwara State received N1 billion from the scheme in 2018, said that the amount was a far cry from what some states like Kebbi and Katsina benefitted from the CBN farming scheme within the same period.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria has designed a lot of programmes for the farmers under the Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme; we have for rice, maize, cassava, Soya bean, cotton among others because it is our intention to make Nigeria self sufficient in food and for export.
“I want to appeal to you (farmers) to work hard in order to reap bumper harvest, you must try to increase the yield of your crop tonnes per hectare so as to make the scheme a success.
“Those of you that have the opportunity to benefit from the programme should try to pay back so as not to block the way for others,” he advised.
Okunola said that the CBN had constituted a management team that would be visiting the farms from time to time.
In his speech, the officer- in- charge of the Nigerian Agriculture Insurance Corporation, Mr Olatunji Mohammad urged the beneficiaries to use the fund and the farm inputs given to them for the intended purpose.
Mohammed who said that the CBN had embedded insurance into the scheme, advised that they should not divert the fund or sell the materials given to them.
“I want to advise you that you should use the money and the materials for farming judiciously. You should not divert the fund or sell the agro chemicals and fertilizers given to you. If the crops fail as a result of natural disaster, which you don’t have control over, NAIC is going to pay you for your loss,” Mohammed stressed.
Chairperson of the Soya beans farmers and Marketers Association of Nigeria, Hajia Zururat Zubair thanked the Federal Government for its efforts in promoting agriculture in the country through the Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme.
She, however, appealed to the government to ensure that the farm inputs get to the farmers at the appropriate time when they would be able to make maximum use of them.
Also, Mr. Ayinde Mosadi who represented the Nigeria Exporting Council (NEPC) called on the farmers to use the input appropriately for a rich harvest in order to achieve the purpose which is meant for.
