Katsina State government, in collaboration with Saemaul Undong Foundation of South Korea and Dangote group of company, have commenced training of 230, 000 local rice farmers on modern farm practices end importation of rice.
About 70 participants drawn from Makera and Randdawa communities of Dutsinma local government area of Katsina state, are undergoing pre, post and harvest training on rice production, and each person is also expected to train 100 farmers in different phases.
Flagging – off the training at Songhai Farms Dutsinma, the Special Adviser to Governor Aminu Bello Masari on Agriculture and natural resources, Abba Abdulahi, said the development is in line with government plans and effort in closing the gap for importation of rice and other commodities in the state.
He then assured them of government’s readiness to support and sustain the partnership to actualize the desire result.
Mr. Keith Kyungbok Lee, the country’s representative of Saemaul Undong foundation, South Korea, said it is a nationwide program of rural development that sought to bridge the income gap between the industrialized community and the rural community whereby residents of rural areas may be able to afford their basic amenities and live comfortably.
He said the training would give local rice farmers first-hand experience on how to do things in the right way to improve their learning experience and get positive results before and during harvest season.
“Our aim is to see immense development in the lives of every village and individual, we have the opportunity to teach and show how their livelihood can be improved.”
Also, Mr Danbaba Nehemiah, from National Cereals Research Institute, Badegry, said they came to support the Saemaul Undong foundation technically train farmers on rice best practicing production, intending to make science work for small farmers to take advantage of hybrid technology of both South Korea and Nigeria.
He explained: ” We start with a neuclose of farmers then we go to a group, now we are having about 70 and each of the 70 will train an hundred and then subsequently we go down to 230,000 habitants of that community.”
