The modern irrigation farmland, which was designed for rice farming in the state, was handed over to the beneficiaries by the Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu, at Yamidi community in Auyo Local Government Area.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the project, which is being executed under the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) scheme, is supported by the World Bank.

Adamu said that TRIMING was a special intervention scheme of the federal government aimed at promoting the sustainable development of irrigated agriculture in the country.

According to him, the contract for the HVIS project is awarded to CGC-YSEJ Joint Ventures in 2018 to execute the rehabilitation of the existing gravity irrigation area.

The minister said that the project had so far covered about 9,000 hectares out of the 12,500 initial covering areas, in addition to expansion of about 778 hectares as well as the rehabilitation of the barrage at cost of N9.3 billion within a 36-month completion period.

He said “Today’s project is working with the Agricultural Development Project (ADPs) in five respective TRIMING states toward achieving the extension of agriculture service delivery to the farmers that are operating in and around the irrigation states,”

According to him, a lot has been done to ensure the sustainability of the scheme, adding that “good progress has been made in the provision of extension services by the triming project”.

Adamu also announced that 12 sectors covering an area of 356 hectares have earlier been completed and handed over to the farmers, including Gamsarka, Ayama, Zumoni, Meshawa, Adaha, Marina, Mado and Auyo.

He said “The fourth handing over to include Arbunau Hausa 129 hectares, Auyakayi 417 hectares, Akubushin 940 hectares and Yamidi A and B 453 per cent hectares. But What we have seen on the fields construction activities are now in the advance stage toward the desired direction. It is my expectation that the contractors will keep up their performance to ensure delivery of this scheme on or before the scheduled time. Lining of the North main canal may be considered later to avoid suspension of irrigation activities for a longer duration. Under the water resources component of the TRIMING project, river triming activities of selected 98.3km of river channels around Hadejia to control the menace of annual flooding are ongoing,”