By Correspondent in Jalingo
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) on Tuesday, distributed Napier Grass planning materials to herders and farmers in Taraba state as part of effort to ensure peace between herders and farmers in the state.
Mr Fred Kafeero, Country Representative of the FAO in Nigeria, during the Flagg-off ceremony in Jalingo,said that the gesture was to aimed at ending farmers herders conflict in the state.
Kafeero, who was represented by Mrs Nifesimi Ogunkua, said that the planting materials which include fertiliser, Napier Grass cuttings and knapsack sprayers, would be distributed to profiled farmers and herders in the area.
He said that the project would be achieved through improved land, alternative feedstock and water management to reduce competition over natural resources.
He announced that the organisation had carried out demarcation survey of 41,468 heactres of land as well as beaconing of 5,000 heactres of land in Mayo-Kam, Bali Local Governnent Area of the state.
The country representative added that the gesture was to further reduce encroachment into grazing reserve earmarked by the state for the development of the National Livestock Transformation Plan of the Federal government.
To this end, he said, FAO had conducted a soci-economic profiling and provision of pasture inputs (hybrid Napier planting materials and fertilisers) to more than 2,000 herders and farmers in the state.
He also said that FAO had also conducted an assessment of alternative fodder/feedstock opportunities in Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba states to more than 2,000 farmers and herders, using FAO farmer field school approach to promote value addition.
He also disclosed that the organisation had piloted modern ranches on three heactres of land in Mayo-Kam grazing reserve, through mechanised land preparation and provision of water harvesting structures.
In his remarks, Mr David Kassa, Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, said that all the grazing reserve were converted into ranch sites in the state.
Kassa said that the state had designed a model pilot ranch to be established in each of the senatorial zones in the state.
He said that these would serve as demonstration and teaching centres, where farmers and herders, interested youths and women would learn skills for ranching and modern livestock production.
He called on all beneficiaries of the programme to make meaningful use of those inputs given to them.
He commended the FAO for the gesture, with a request for it to initiate more programmes for farmers and herders in the state.
Mr Bala Ajuji, one of the farmers beneficiaries who spoke to Journalists at the occasion, also commended the FOA for the programme, adding that the gesture would go along way in addressing farmers herders clashes in the state.
Malam Ardo Musa, a herder beneficiary, said that the much anticipated ranching had begun with the gesture by the FAO.
