FG inaugurates yam storage facility to promote Export
The Federal Government on Sunday announced the inauguration of a yam storage facility at the Faculty of Agriculture, Nasarawa State University in Keffi-Shabu, Lafia, which would promote the export of the commodity from Nigeria.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sabo Nanono, said the facility would store 45 to 50 metric tonnes of yam seed and was estimated to cover 16 hectares of land when planted.
He said the huge output of using clean seed yam would boost production, increase earnings of yam farmers and enhance the export of yam from Nasarawa.
The minister disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja by his ministry’s Chief Information Officer, Ezeaja Ikemefuna.
Nanono said the location of the facility within the university would add value to teaching, research and income generation for farmers in the state, as the yam storage facility would generate about 200 jobs to the value chain.
The Vice-Chancellor, Nasarawa State University, Keffi-Shabu-Lafia, Prof. Suleiman Mohammed, said the facility would be harnessed to support the Federal Government’s efforts towards improving agricultural productivity.
He said N35m was released by the state government to establish an aeroponics system for seed production, which was also a component of the yam value chain.
