Delta Acquires 200 Hectares Of Farm Land

The Delta State Gov
ernment says it has acquired 200 hectares of land for this year’s dry season farming to boost food production in the state.
The Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr Misan Kubeyinje, made the disclosure in an interview with  newsmen in Asaba recently.
Kubeyinje said that government would assist farmers in the state with improved maize seedlings and fertilizers to ensure good yields.
“Very soon we will commence the distribution of maize seeds and fertilizers to the farmers.
“We will also give farmers free tractor services for the number of hectares they would want to cultivate,” he said.
The commissioner said that the dry season farming would be a collaborative effort between the state and the Federal Government.
He said the state had also acquired 300 hectares of land for rice farming, adding that it had proposed N150 million for the project this year.
Kubeyinje said the amount would be used to provide farming equipment such as rice planters and tractors for rice farmers in the state so as to boost production.
He added that the measure was aimed at the state being self-sufficient in rice production by 2015 when the proposed ban on rice importation into the country would be implemented.
The commissioner also disclosed that the government had concluded plans to develop farm settlements in many parts of the state.
Kubenyinje noted that Delta currently had four settlements located in the three senatorial districts of the state.
He said the state government had budgeted N38 million for the development of the settlements.
However, all efforts to get official confirmation from the police proved abortive and they are yet to issue any statement on the incident.