National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has handed 16,169 litres of liquid gel fertiliser over to the Benue State government for onward distribution to farmers invaded by herdsmen in 2018.
Performing the ceremony in Makurdi on Thursday, the director -general, Zubaida Umar, said the fertiliser was under the National Food Security Council – Emergency Agricultural Intervention (NFSC – EAl) for states affected by the 2018 conflicts.
Represented by zonal director, NEMA in the North Central, Bashir Garga, Umar said the federal government decided to supply liquid gel fertiliser to displaced farmers as a replacement for the balance of NPK fertiliser approved for Benue State under the agricultural intervention programme.
Umar explained that NEMA had commenced distribution of NPK fertiliser to affected farmers in Benue State in 2020, but this could not be concluded due to the changes in the regulations by the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative which led to the termination of the contract between NEMA and the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).
“Following the termination of the contract for the supply of NPK fertiliser and based on recommendations from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), NEMA commenced the process of seeking approval to substitute from Granular Powder Fertilizer to liquid gel fertiliser. I want to tell you that one litre of liquid gel fertiliser is equivalent to 50Kg of NPK 20-10-10 fertiliser.”
Receiving the fertilizer on behalf of Governor Hyacinth Alia, his principal private secretary, Dr Emmanuel Chenge, commended President Tinubu and NEMA for their zeal to replace in 2024 what the internally displaced persons would have got in 2020, saying his continued support for Benue people, especially in the face of difficulties would not be taken for granted.
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