“… identifies shortage of extension workers, funding as major challenges hampering performance of NADP…”

Nasarawa State House of Assembly, has called on the State Government to allow Ministry of Agriculture to collect its revenue and implement sustainable farming practices as applicable in advanced agricultural technology and provide support to small farmers for food security in the State.

This, the House says the use of consultants in generating revenue for the ministry is undermining its performance and is against the global best practices in enhancing food production calling for full revenue generating autonomy for the ministry.

The Chairman, House Committee on Agriculture, Dr Ibrahim Peter Akwe made the call when management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Nasarawa Agricultural Development Programme (NADP) appeared before the committee on their 2024 budget Performance.

The committee chairman said engaging consultants in handling major sectors in agricultural ministry has brought setback in the area of revenue collections to the state coffer.

” Rt. Hon. Speaker has directed us to oversight your activities.

” We want to know your 2024 budget performance for the first quarter

” You can also tell us your challenges if you have,” he said .

According to him, there must be a deliberate efforts gear towards provide farming equipments and resilient farming methods, that will ensure a stable and improving access to credit and training for farmers to enhance productivity and sustainability.

Akwe further assured of the committee support to enable them succeed, thus entertained fear that the trend in the agricultural ministry in the State is not in turn with best practices stressing that even at the Federal level where Treasuring Single Accounts TSC is been practiced, agricultural sector has revenue autonomy as the main stream of the economy and wonder why such is not practice in the State and called for a change.

Dr. Akwe called for a more understanding and collective efforts between the State Government and the State Assembly as well as key players in the sector to change the narrative considering the fact that agriculture is the main stream of the State economy.

Earlier, Hon Umaru Abubakar DanAkano, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Mr Emmanuel Allahnana, The Project Manager, NADP while presenting their budget performance separately said that Gov. Abdullahi Sule is doing well in the agricultural sector.

They also assured of their readiness to continue to initiate agricultural policies and programmes in order to boost food security in the state.

Mr Emmanuel Allahnana, The Project Manager, NADP identified fundings and lack of manpower, especially extension agents among others as major constraints of the programme.

During the presentation, the lawmakers expressed concerned that NADP in the State is now a shadow of itself with only one operational vehicle, having now only 385 staff against 7000 staff the program was having during departure from Plateau when the State was created aside having it’s last 150 employed extension workers during the regime of Gov. Akwe Doma in 2009.

It was further observed that professionally each extension workers is to attend to 800 farmers but currently one extension worker is attached to 12,000 farmers in the state which is totally unacceptable to the House and the entire system.