The Cross River State Government has commenced the distribution of 20,000 bags of free fertiliser to 8,000 farmers across the state under a federal agricultural intervention aimed at improving production and easing the impact of rising input costs.

The initiative, launched in Calabar, is being implemented through the Farm Input Support Programme (FISP), an intervention of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

Speaking during the flag-off ceremony, Cross River State Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, Johnson Ebokpo, said the intervention was targeted at supporting smallholder farmers whose productivity had been affected by the increasing cost of agricultural inputs.

Ebokpo, who represented Governor Bassey Otu at the event, explained that the federal government introduced the fertiliser subsidy as a measure to reduce farmers’ input burden and strengthen food production.

“The idea behind it is in recognition of the high cost of inputs and in order to support productivity and production.

“The federal government decided to subsidise for farmers the input source of procuring fertilisers. The fertilisers are free of charge,” he said.

The commissioner said the state government adhered to the programme’s guidelines in identifying beneficiaries, with the aim of ensuring that the fertiliser reached genuine farmers who met the required criteria.

“We have followed the framework to ensure that the process is properly coordinated, transparent and targeted at farmers who meet the prescribed requirements,” he said.

According to Ebokpo, the distribution followed the South-South zonal flag-off held on June 27 and is being implemented in collaboration with the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) across all 18 local government areas of Cross River State.

He stressed that the effectiveness of the intervention would not be judged simply by the quantity of fertiliser distributed but by its eventual impact on farmers and agricultural production.

“The real success will be seen in the farms; in increased production, improved yields, better incomes for farmers and more food on our tables,” Ebokpo said.

The Team Lead of NADF, Lekan Alabi, said the fertiliser distribution forms part of the federal government’s wider agricultural agenda focused on strengthening food security and promoting sustainability.

Alabi said the results recorded from the intervention in Cross River would influence the possibility of additional support for farmers in the state.

“This is just the first. Second one is also coming. And as much as we are able to get impactful results, I can guarantee you that we will be coming back again to do the same in Cross River,” Alabi said.

The State Coordinator of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Sampson Maddy George, also said the distribution had addressed concerns about the possible diversion of the fertiliser.

“All the fertilisers they brought to my doorstep are intact,” she said, while calling on beneficiaries to ensure the inputs were applied strictly for their intended agricultural purpose.

Meanwhile, the state chairman of AFAN, Rev. Ojikpong Nyam Bisong, described the intervention as unusual and praised President Bola Tinubu, Governor Bassey Otu and the Commissioner for Agriculture for their support for farmers.

He appealed to beneficiaries to use the fertiliser judiciously to improve food production, while highlighting the strategic role of agriculture in the state’s development.

“What we are receiving today and in the days to come will be used accordingly for the purpose of growing Cross River State,” he said, describing Cross River as the “food basket of Nigeria.”

Source: leadership.ng