Babagana Zulum, the governor of Borno State, has declared that the state government will provide farmers in areas impacted by the Boko Haram insurgency with petrol subsidies.
He made the announcement of the subsidy on Friday evening in Bama town when flagging off the delivery of agricultural inputs to more than 5,000 farmers who had previously been displaced by Boko Haram terrorists.
The governor claims that farmers in Maiduguri will receive a N600 subsidy for each litre of gasoline sold for between N1,000 and N1,200. This is intended to lessen the financial strain on farmers in areas where years of conflict have destroyed infrastructure and the economy.
Zulum underlined that a comparable program that was put into place in Damasak, Mobar Local Government Area, the previous year, had enhanced food output and raised living standards.
“One of the major challenges that are facing the farming communities here as regards irrigation farming is the increasing cost of fuel; as a result, I want to announce to the general public that the government will procure petroleum products and sell them to the farmers at a subsided rate. A litre of petrol is being sold in Maiduguri at the cost of about N1,200, but insha Allah, henceforth for irrigation farmers this season, a litre of petrol will be sold at the rate of N600,” Zulum said.
The governor also said that the state’s Commissioner for Agriculture will work with the Brigade Commander to ensure the delivery of the petroleum products to farmers in Bama town as soon as possible.
In addition to the petrol subsidy, Zulum distributed farm inputs, including 2000 bags of blended NPK fertiliser, 1000 units of water pumps, and 620 units of gasoline pumps.
Other materials include 380 units of solar water pumps, 1000 units of sprayers, 800 rolls of 2-inch flexible hose, and 1000 litres of pesticides and seeds, among other items.
He claims that his administration has approved the construction of 250 more tube wells and has already built more than 100 for irrigation farmers.
In order to evaluate the continuing rehabilitation efforts, Governor Babagana Umara Zulum has also travelled to the Bama Local Government’s Darajama and Goniri villages.
While expressing pleasure with the project’s quality, Zulum reaffirmed that his administration will not permit anyone to undermine its resettlement initiative.
The governor expressed gratitude to the federal government for the outstanding support of his administration’s reconstruction and resettlement of areas impacted by insurgency.
