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30,000 Hectare Rice Farm Underway in Taraba Courtesy of FG

By on February 17, 2012

The Federal Government in conjunction with the Taraba State government has unveiled concrete plans to establish a 30,000 hectare rice farm in Taraba, capable of producing 300,000 tonnes of Rice per annum. This development will lead to the cancellation of about 15% of Nigeria’s current rice importation which is just about 2,000,000 tonnes per annum.

The FG and Taraba are partnering with a private sector player identified as Dominion Rice Integrated Farms Ltd, and the Joint Venture based on the PPP model is referred to as a culmination of investment drive in the Agricultural Transformation Agenda.

The project is located next to the Taraba River and is fully irrigated and capable of producing 2.4 crop cycles per year.

According to a statement released from the Ministry of Agriculture, ““This farm, when completed, will require up to 15,000 well trained men and women working daily. Approximately 90 per cent of the land will be operated with contract farmers with the remainder being utilized as a corporate farm and for educational training purposes by the lead investor, Dominion Farms. Approximately, 300,000 tonnes of rice will be produced annually for the Nigerian marketplace, which now imports approximately 2,000,000 tonnes of rice annually, thereby offsetting 15 per cent of imports.

“Following signing of the MoU, fifty young Nigerian men and women will be leaving Nigeria for Kenya for a six month course in modern farming techniques, including tractor operation, irrigation systems, farm management, and equipment repair; rice processing, and team building. After returning from Kenya they will be given the opportunity to become key personnel in developing new lands for rice production in Taraba State.”