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AFDB collaborates with IITA to aid farmers in flooded states

By on October 5, 2012

Tomatoes Produce at a Farmers market

An agricultural-assisted programme, the African Development Bank (AFDB) has concluded arrangements to collaborate with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), in a bid to support farmers in the flood besieged states.
 
Dr Ibrahim Arabi, who is the National Co-ordinator of AFDB Community-based agricultural and rural development programme, yesterday disclosed this while speaking to journalists after attending a meeting with some government officials and the affected farmers in Yola, Adamawa State.
 
The Co-ordinator, maintained that the move was to curb imminent National food crisis because of the flood in some States.
 
“The bank has concluded arrangement with the management of IITA to urgently provide and release early yield varieties of maize, cowpea, rice among others to farmers in flood affected states to curtail the imminent food crisis,” he continued.
 
He stated that, they will provide short-term varieties, the varieties would be harvested within 60 to 80 days to replace the submerged crops for the year. “Anytime from now, when the flood begin to subsidise, farmers should start planting the seeds because we still have two months or more of rain season in some parts of the country and that period would enable them grow the crops,” he said.
 
Arabi, who doubles as the Zonal Director, Northeast, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, and Rural Development named Adamawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Kwara and Kaduna as the states to benefit from the first phase of the intervention programme. He further expressed dismay to the level of damage the flood has caused and further advised the Federal Government to put in place modalities that will keep this from happening again.