RAJAB 10 1430 A.H.
THURSDAY JULY, 2 2009
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Improved seed,animal production: 7 north-western states urged to assist
From Isma’il Muhammad Dutse
Seven Northern western states comprising Kaduna, Kano, Jigawa, Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kebbi have been urge to assist their farmers with the newly improved variety of crops seeds and animal production invented by the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR) of the Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, (ABU) as the only panacea of erratic rainfall being experienced by the region almost every year.
The plea was made by Dr Lamido Aliyu, of IAR while, responding to questions from Daily Triumph in Dutse, shortly after he chaired the quarterly review meeting of Research Extension, Farmer input Linkage System (REFILS), which held in Dutse, last week.
He said the application of such new discoveries, has become imperative in those drought prone areas, because according to him, if such crops were planted, they could be mature for harvesting within 60 to 70 days.
Dr Aliyu disclosed further that the new seeds include; QPM ( Samz 14) maize seed, Sampara-8 beans seed and newly improved variety cowpea.
The university den added that the research institute has also fabricated locally thresher, groundnut oil extraction and deweeding machines all for farmer usage in a modern way.
He explained that the national Agricultural Research institutes and Agricultural Development Project (ADPS), from the states , came together am quarterly basis to discuss a new technology that has been discovered by the research institute and those technologies to be extended to farmers.
According to him that they tried to categorieses those items and then gave them to extension officers so that the farmers can eventually use these new technologies.
In his contribution, the director of extension, Jigawa state Agricultural Development Authority (JARDA,) Alhaji Umar Usman said it is the duty of extension service workers at village levels to enlighten farmers on how to apply fertilizers and new method of farming so as to get optimum yield.
