KSADP, Sasakawa flag off distribution of agricultural machinery, strengthen support to smallholder farmers in Kano
The Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project (KSADP), in a program implemented by the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) and funded by the Kano State Government, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), and the Lives and Livelihoods Fund (LLF), on Wednesday commenced the distribution of agricultural machines and equipment to smallholder farmers across the 44 local government areas of Kano State.
Speaking during the flag-off ceremony at one of the project’s storage facilities in Kano, the KSADP Project Coordinator, Comrade Abdulrasheed Kofar Mata, said the exercise forms part of the organisation’s long-standing tradition of engaging the media through field days to highlight progress and directly interact with farming communities.
Kofar Mata explained that the Mega Media Field Day, an annual initiative of the Sasakawa Africa Association, has been adopted and expanded under KSADP due to the scale of the project’s interventions and the need to amplify successes recorded across the state.
“Every year, we invite the media to meet the farmers we support, listen to them, and report their experiences. With KSADP’s wide reach, we felt it was important to intensify this model so that the achievements of the project can be well documented,” he said.
SolaceBase reports that the coordinator revealed that the project has procured 98 tractors, complete with trailers, ploughs, and harrows for beneficiaries. Ten have already been commissioned at the mechanization center, eight were presented at Wednesday’s event, while the remaining 80 will be distributed across other mechanization centers and farming communities.
In addition to the tractors, the project is also distributing:, 410 mini tractors,160 multi-crop reapers, 150 maize reapers and 100 rice reapers.
Read Also:Kano post-harvest losses drop by 51% under KSADP, SAA intervention
These machines, he noted, are expected to boost productivity, reduce drudgery, and promote modernized farming practices among smallholder farmers.
Kofar Mata also highlighted the distribution of solar-powered irrigation pumps, which he described as one of the project’s most impactful interventions.
“So far, we have given out 1,600 solar pumps. Today, we are flagging off the distribution of an additional 1,900 pumps in the pipeline. By the end of the project, a total of about 3,500 solar pumps will have been distributed across Kano,” he said.
He added that the pumps will significantly reduce farmers’ cost of production during dry season farming, thereby boosting yields and profitability.
On his part, Kano State Project Coordinator, KSADP, Alhaji Ibrahim Garba Muhammad, reminded attendees that KSADP is a multi-activity project, and the items on display represent only a fraction of its interventions.
He outlined several major accomplishments, including: Construction of 100 milk collection centers across the state at a cost of over ₦6 billion, development of 20 modern slaughterhouses, worth over ₦2 billion establishment of grazing reserves valued at more than ₦3 billion, development of irrigation land at Watari and Kabo, costing over ₦5 billion, a farming support scheme targeted at vulnerable households, worth ₦4 billion, rural road construction projects valued at ₦9.9 billion, upgraded cattle markets costing over ₦500 million, and capacity-building, scholarships, and pastoralist empowerment initiatives
He stressed that these achievements demonstrate how far-reaching and impactful KSADP has become.
Muhammad clarified that the ongoing distribution is not the mega support package expected from the project.
“A much bigger intervention is coming. His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Kano State, will launch a mega distribution that is projected to impact the lives of over 1.5 million people,” he stated.
Muhammad warned beneficiaries against selling the equipment, noting that the government will deploy a high-level professional monitoring team to track all interventions.
“We will upload the full list of beneficiaries so that every citizen can verify the names, phone numbers, and items received. Transparency is our priority,” he said.
Umar Hassan Gora from Minjibir Local Government, one of the beneficiaries, expressed profound appreciation to KSADP for the support, noting that the intervention will greatly enhance his farming activities and improve his productivity.
Similarly, Mallam Nazifi Ado from Doguwa Local Government, also a beneficiary, commended the project for extending life-changing assistance to farmers like him. He said the gesture would ease his work and strengthen his means of livelihood.
Another beneficiary, Mairo Inuwa, who received a rice thresher, expressed deep gratitude, explaining that as a widow caring for orphans and with a son who recently graduated but remains unemployed, the support has provided her family with a reliable source of income. She described the intervention as timely and transformative.
In the same vein, Umar Surajo Sani, who benefited from a solar water pump, appreciated KSADP for reducing the burden of irrigation costs, adding that the support will significantly expand his productivity during the dry season.
Also speaking, Mallam Abdulhadi from Garin Mallam, a beneficiary of a model rice milling machine, thanked the project for empowering him and his community, noting that the equipment will boost rice processing and create opportunities for better income.
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