By; FUNMI OROYE ADERINTO, Kaduna
Kaduna State Government, led by Governor Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai on Thursday said, Kaduna State is the largest producer of tomato in Nigeria and the state government is ready to collaborate with National Stakeholders Committee for Government in Promotion and Regulation of Tomato Sector in Nigeria.
He said this, when the Committee for Tomato Sector in Nigeria came on a courtesy visit to Government House in Kaduna.
The State Deputy Governor, Architect Barnabas Bala Bantex who represented Governor el-Rufai welcomed the delegation to home of tomatoes, where the state produce over 1 millions metric tones of tomato annually.
According to him, the state government intention is to work with farmers, link them with marketers and producers to make profit that worth the production.
He expressed that, the state government has come out with strategies that will help the farmers in production of tomato and the state government look forward to partner with stakeholders in the state.
He disclosed that, government is ready to provide land and other incentive that will improve the production of tomato on their own capacity.
He noted that, they are convince that the state government effort will yield to positive result toward the production of tomato in the state.
He point out that, the challenges facing tomato farmers in the state, is that tomato farmers sell their tomato to local markets in a low price.
The deputy Governor officially inaugurates the national stakeholders committee for government and pray for their success in making tomato production a reality in the state.
In a remark, the leader of the delegation, Vice President, Nigeria Agribusiness Group (NABG), Dr Emmanuel Ijewere, said Kaduna State is very symbolic to agricultural revolution, as the major tomato producing state in west African.
He said the state is kind enough to maintain and sustain its status in the agribusiness industry by agreeing to facilitate any useful initiatives to drive agricultural transformation with intention of diversifying the nation’s dwindling economy.
According to him, hundred of thousands of farmers in Northern Nigeria are dependent on growing tomato as a sources of livelihood.
He explained that, tomato farmers also required incentives and favorable government policy to encourage them to produce more small and medium enterprises to improve and produce seed varieties and develop technologies for preservation and processing.
He noted that, the concept of creating a National Tomato Committee was adopted by the stakeholders during a price stabilization meeting held in Kaduna as a best practice derived from Republic of Senegal, after a lesson learning and exchange visit by a conglomerate of tomato stakeholders in Nigeria.
