By Ummi Ismaeel,
Minna
Niger State government has accessed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN), Accelerated Agriculture Development Scheme for 2018 to boost the production of rice, maize and soya beans across the state.
State Commissioner for Livestock and Fisheries, Alhaji Haruna Dukku, disclosed this after the State Council meeting in Minna.
He explained further that no fewer than 10,000 youths between 18 to 35 years benefitted from the scheme.
Dukku said that the various agricultural activities mainly for infrastructural development at different local communities in the state and reaffirmed the state government’s determination to give agriculture desired priority in line with the administration’s agriculture transformation agenda.
Dukku said that the 45 years old abandoned Rice Mill in Bida constructed by the Korean government and handed over to Niger State government, he said, would receive attention of the state government after the Korean Embassy in Nigeria had expressed worry over the facility’s abandonment.
The project, he said, had been concerted to a reputable rice mill based in Ibadan, Oyo State with about eight outlets across the country called Elephant Group Company and efforts were ongoing to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to perfect the agreement.