By Stanley Onyekwere
As part of measures to bolster food security, the FCT Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat (ARDS) has initiated an intensive campaign targeted at boosting dry season farming within Abuja.
According to the ARDS Acting Secretary, Ibe Chukwuemeka the initiative was designed to mitigate the adverse effects of the continued attacks on farmers by bandits in far north, which already has negative impacts on the nation’s food security.
Chukwuemeka, who noted that FCT has large farming populations that could contribute maximally to the nation’s food production, said the Secretariat was working on some irrigation projects, and constructed earth dams for farmers.
He explained that the Secretariat has also initiated skills acquisition programmes for all categories of farmers, to equip them on hiw to use modern technologies.
He adds “The Secretariat is currently embarking on programmes to support Dry season farming activities in order to guarantee the availability of food all year round.
“Apart from providing irrigation equipment to farmers such as water pumping machines, water hoses etc, the Secretariat has assisted farmers to construct earth dams.”
