Lagos empowers rice farmers

Lagos State government, yesterday, moved to boost rice production to become self-sufficient with the empowerment of no fewer than 800 rice farmers in the state with preferred high yielding FARO 44 seeds, brand new high quality knapsack sprayers, rain boots and farm coats.

The state Acting Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms Abisola Olusanya, who gave out the empowerment tools at the beginning of a three-day capacity building of the rice farmers on current production practices in the rice value chain, explained that the strategic intervention by the state government was informed by the need to boost the farming activities of rice farmers in the state.

She said the empowerment of the rice farmers was also to ensure sustainable supply of rice paddies by the farmers, particularly bearing in mind the imminent completion of the state-owned Imota Rice Mill.

“It is expected that if these farming techniques are adopted by the farmers in the next planting season, it will result in an increase in paddy production in the state to an expected average yield of four tonnes per hour,” the acting commissioner said.

Olusanya explained that the capacity building and training was expected to give all participating farmers the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in modern and improved rice farming techniques.

She added that the training would also expose the farmers to efficient harvesting methods by using the most up-to-date agricultural practices to ensure maximum output, improved yield as well as to derive maximum return on investment.

“Due to the fact that the state has limited agricultural cultivable land area and with the increasing rate of small and large-scale rice mills across the nation, there is a strain on the state getting constant supply of paddies to feed the mill when it becomes fully operational,” she said.