By Ibrahim Muhammad
The Jigawa Agricultural Transformation Agency (JATA) has expressed readiness to enhance agricultural productivity and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers across the state.
The Director General of JATA, Dr. Saifullahi Umar disclosed this when he received delegation of International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) led by Country Representative for Nigeria, Dr. Ijantiku Ignatius Angarawai, when he paid a courtesy visit.
The visit is aimed at scaling up scientific innovations and research-based solutions for dryland farming between the two parties.
The meeting focused on expanding the adoption of ICRISAT’s climate-resilient crop varieties, sustainable agronomic practices, and technical support for inclusive rural development especially in vulnerable farming communities.
Key components of the engagement included strategies for improving crop value addition, particularly for mandate crops such as sorghum, millet, and groundnut. The agencies explored ways to enhance processing, product development, and nutrition outcomes to combat malnutrition and improve market access.
Other areas including livestock feed formulation using crop residues and dual-purpose crop varieties, a move expected to strengthen the integration of crop and livestock systems in rural communities as well as expansion of the Farmer Field School programme.
The Director General of JATA, Dr. Saifullahi Umar, commended ICRISAT for its enduring role in promoting dryland agriculture.
He assured the delegation of the agency’s commitment to building a strong partnership that will accelerate Jigawa’s agricultural transformation, particularly in value addition and rural empowerment
Dr. Angarawai reaffirmed ICRISAT’s dedication to supporting Jigawa’s agricultural agenda, emphasizing the need to take innovations beyond research centers and directly to farmers.
“Our goal is to ensure that our high-yielding, drought-tolerant seeds and agronomic practices reach the farmers who need them most,” he said
