70,000 hectares dry season wheat farming begins November – FG

The Federal Government, on Friday, announced that it would commence the dry season cultivation of wheat on over 70,000 hectares of land beginning from November.

It said an expected yield of 875,000 metric tonnes would be derived from the dry season wheat farming, as this would be stored in the country’s food reserves.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, disclosed this at a briefing in Abuja that focused on the way forward for agriculture in Nigeria.

Outlining the immediate priority actions that would be ongoing till the end of 2023, he said, “Implementation of the dry season wheat production is starting in November 2023 as part of the National Agricultural Growth Scheme and Agro Pocket projects funded by the African Development Bank.

“Under this scheme, the target is to produce wheat on over 70, 000 hectares across the wheat production zone of the country, with an expected yield of 875,000 metric tonnes for our food reserves;

“Blending of appropriate fertilisers to support this year’s dry season farming while making provisions for next year farming season well in advance; providing train-the-trainer for extension agents involved in dry season farming in collaboration with wheat producing states and other partners such as flour mills.”