ThriveAgric partners Mercy Corps to launch its first multipurpose grain cleaning and milling facility in Gombe

ThriveAgric, a leading agri-tech company committed to advancing food security in Africa in collaboration with Mercy Corps has unveiled its Multipurpose Grain Facility project in Nasarawo Industrial Layout in Gombe State.

The project, which is under the Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience Activity (RRA) initiative is intended to enhance the local economy, empower smallholder farmers and improve the agricultural value chain.

It Is also expected to contribute to Nigeria’s self-sufficiency and economic diversification goals.

As part of the project, a multipurpose rice cleaning and milling facility was established at the layout.

Inaugurating the facility on Wednesday, Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State who was represented by the state’s Commissioner for Agriculture and Animal Husbandry and Cooperatives, Dr Barnabas Malle, said that the facility would help to reduce post-harvest losses.

Yahaya said that such losses often caused huge financial losses to smallholder farmers.

He said that the project would complement the State Government’s commitment toward strengthening agriculture and enhancing the lives of smallholder farmers.

He said that rice production plays a crucial role in food security and local livelihoods.

“Our farmers have often faced serious challenges, from post- harvest losses to limited access to modern facilities.

“This new facility, made possible through the collaborative efforts of ThriveAgric and Mercy Corps under the RRA, is a direct response to these challenges.

“It will enhance our ability to process rice efficiently, improve the quality of our yields, and minimise losses that impact both income and food availability.

“This is a catalyst for economic growth as this facility is set to create value addition to the commodity,” he said.

The governor commended ThriveAgric and Mercy Corps for their support, adding that it would reduce poverty and ensure farmers get good returns on their investment.

The Chief Executive Officer of ThriveAgric, Mr Uka Eje, said the initiative was one of the many partnerships aimed at supporting smallholder farmers through value addition.

Eje said that value addition remains a necessary tool to helping farmers to earn more from their labour.

According to him, the project launch symbolises ThriveAgric’s commitment to building an Africa that feeds itself and the world, adding that “by enabling local processing, we’re addressing a core challenge in the agricultural value chain – post-harvest losses while empowering farmers with the tools needed to produce high-quality grains that command better market prices.

“For us, we want to make sure that the farmers are rightly incentivised to go back to farming in order to earn more.
“Agriculture is beyond a cultural activity, it is largely commerce and through this work and initiative, we want to ensure that it is profitable commerce for the smallholder farmers.

“This launch is a groundbreaking achievement as ThriveAgric’s first multipurpose grain cleaning and milling facility.

“We’re not just building infrastructure; we’re creating a sustainable solution that positions Nigerian agriculture for greater economic impact and resilience,” he said.
He said that the rice processing facility would impact 20,000 farmers directly and indirectly.

Also, the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Manager of Mercy Corps, Mr Shadrack Gideon, said that the initiative was business model to help drive investment into the state.
Gideon further said that the move would improve smallholder farmers’ incomes, hence he urged them to embrace the initiative.

A rice farmer from Billiri, Mrs Blessing Stephen, said the initiative would greatly assist smallholder farmers, reduce wastage during rice processing, improve rice quality and farmers’ incomes.

Stephen said: “I am happy that we now have this facility where we can clean and process our rice to look like foreign one, this will help us to sell them quickly with more profits.

“It usually took me months to process 100 bags of paddy rice manually.

“And because of the stress, I ended up selling them at give away prices, but now within days I can process all my paddies.”
Our Correspondent reports that the multipurpose grain cleaning and milling facility which is a state-of-the-art facility with a processing capacity of 15-20 metric tonnes will enhance the quality of grains such as rice, maize, and millet by removing impurities like stones and dirt.

The advanced equipment, including temperature and humidity control systems will also ensure that farmers can access premium markets with a projected income increase of up 30 per cent.

With over 50 local job opportunities directly created through the new facility, and an additional boost for agri-SMEs engaged with the One-Stop Shops, the project is set to drive economic empowerment, especially for women and youth.

ThriveAgric partners Mercy Corps to launch its first multipurpose grain cleaning and milling facility in Gombe

Farmers Harvesting Unripe Sorghum, other Farm Products in Yobe

By: Kolo Gulani

There’s no doubt, Yobe State Government has been trying in terms of security of lives and properties in the state since the assumption of Hon. Mai Mala Buni CON and beyond.

Recall that in 2019, Gov. Buni donates security patrol vehicles to NDLEA, NAFDAC and other security agencies mainly to rid the state of the problem of drug abuse and the use of unwholesome products, especially among the youths.

It’s also worth to mention that the state government had also donated 30 Toyota Hilux vehicles for security surveillance to the Nigerian Police and other security agencies in the state.

The governor made the donation while constituting ‘Haba Maza Squad’ involving Nigerian Police and other security agencies aimed at ensuring peace and security across the state.

Meanwhile, we have to also commend the establishment of Operation Haba Maza as they have tried their possible best in safeguarding the state.

Unfortunately, in the recent days, there are some lingering problems that the attention of Yobe State Government has to be drawn. The issue of farmer/herder conflicts which forced many farmers harvesting unripe sorghum and other farm products in the state.

It’s found out that many farmlands were destroyed by the herders in various local government areas in the state more particularly, Gulani and Gujba. The menace is yet to be curbed despite the efforts made by the state government, traditional rulers and concerned authorities in deploying security personnel to various areas as well as constituting dialogue.

Findings also revealed that there are cases of robbing the vulnerable people inside keke, burglary and theft in the Damaturu metropolis.

Farmers Harvesting Unripe Sorghum, other Farm Products in Yobe

FG launches agric empowerment programme in Delta

By: Michael Mike

The Federal Government has successfully concluded its agricultural empowerment programme across six south-south states with a grand launch of Project “Earn From The Soil” in Delta State.

Mrs Gift Johnbull, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement, South-South, made this known in a statement signed by her and made available to journalists in Abuja on Friday.

According to her, the launch in Warri, Delta State follows the successful rollout of the project across Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Edo, culminating in Delta State with this grand occasion.

Johnbull added that the government was now set to proceed with the full implementation of the project, which aimed to revolutionise agriculture and enhance food security in the region by promoting cooperative formation and commodity-based clustering.

She explained that the initiative aligned with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, focusing on food security, agricultural growth, and economic empowerment for women.

She said: “As a daughter of the soil, it is with great pleasure and a deep sense of responsibility that today we begin the domestication of the Women Economic Empowerment Policy (WEE) in Delta State and launch Project ‘Earn From The Soil.

“This significant event marks a critical step forward in our collective effort to economically empower women in Delta State and the wider South-South region,”Johnbull stated.

She noted that the Federal Government’s target was to reach over 500,000 smallholder farmers, agribusinesses, and fisherfolk, with a particular focus on empowering women.

“As we embark on this journey together, let us harness our resources, our fertile lands, and our people’s ingenuity to build a prosperous, food-secure, and equitable Delta State,”.

The goals of the project, as outlined by Johnbull, include: Promotion of sustainable farming practices that increase agricultural productivity, Enhancing value addition to agricultural and aquacultural products, focusing on processing and packaging,

Developing robust market linkages to ensure women farmers access both local and international markets, Fostering cluster projects that promote entrepreneurship in agribusiness and create opportunities along the agricultural value chain.

Mr Emakpor Odogu, Executive Assistant to the Governor on Community Development in Delta State, commended the timeliness of the project.

“When you are hungry and you have a means to get on and you have a deliberate course of action, it then means you have hope,” he said.

Odogu highlighted the women’s economic empowerment policy as a key component of this federal initiative, describing it as a “deliberate course of action” being put in place to alleviate hunger.

“The launch of the WEE Policy and the “Earn From is Soil” project is expected to position Delta State as a leader in agricultural development, setting a benchmark for sustainable economic growth through women’s empowerment in the South-South region,”he said.

He noted that this aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of zero tolerance for hunger and expressed gratitude to the federal government for bringing such initiative to Delta State.

The project allowed to tailor its support to the specific needs of farmers, with implementing partners like Nexim Bank, Zenith Bank, REA, UN Women, the Niger Delta, Albright Stonebridge and others offering targeted assistance based on the commodities produced by local farmers.

FG launches agric empowerment programme in Delta