The Katsina State Government has initiated a significant move by converting 722 local government workers into agricultural extension service officers.
This transformation aims to bolster support for farmers by providing them with vital information to enhance agricultural productivity across the state.
Governor Dikko Radda revealed this development during a two-day training program themed “Building the Future of Extension Services,” held on Tuesday in Katsina.
He emphasized that this decision was crucial to address the shortage of manpower in agricultural extension services. As of May 2023, the state only had 72 extension workers, underscoring the urgent need for such an initiative.
Governor Radda further highlighted that the new initiative would ensure that each of the 361 political wards spanning the 34 local government areas of the state would have at least two agricultural extension service workers, thereby significantly expanding outreach and support for farmers.
“I believe extension service is a game-changer for any agricultural development,” he said, adding that the conversion was to strengthen extension services and ensure massive food production.
“They will be trained at their respective senatorial zones and local government areas to ensure that they master the concept very well,” he said, adding that each of them would be given a motorcycle for easy movement within their area of responsibility.
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He assured farmers that the government would provide them with improved seeds and other inputs to boost productivity.
The Commissioner of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Prof. Ahmed Bakori in his remarks, said the government was determined to transform agricultural activities to attain food sufficiency and security, as well as address the current insecurity in the state.
The commissioner said that the responsibility of the extension workers was to deliver the latest scientific information regarding farming that would trigger growth in agriculture, directly to farmers.
Also, the Managing Director of Katsina State Agricultural and Rural Development Authority, Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, charged the participants to pay attention to what they would be taught them to disseminate it properly to farmers.
He also urged farmers to cooperate with the extension service workers for the overall development of agriculture in the state.
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