Ramatu Garba
A Non Governmental Organization, HortiNigeria, under a Dutch-funded horticultural program has expressed determination to assist no fewer than 60,000 farmers to tackle Tuta Absoluta(tomato ebola) in Kano and other North West states.
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The Sector Coordinator and Business to Business linkage HortiNigeria, Mr Abdullahi Umar, made the disclosure during the integrated Pest Management (IPM) Campaign at the demonstration site in Gidan Kwari, Bunkure local government Kano.
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He said the campaign aimed at shedding light on innovative solutions and strategies like the use of tutasan and pheromone traps, mulching and neem oil bio pesticide as over time, the pest gets resistant to chemicals used.
“We target 60,000 farmers between Kano and Kaduna, after training for twelve months, we would move to other states to do something similar.
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“The IPM was coordinated for a greater Tuta management both environmentally and economically.
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“For access to Finance and access to market to enable farmers scale up their business” Umar said
The coordinator pointed out that the farmers were equipped with effective tools to mitigate the impact of Tuta absoluta on tomato crops and fostering resilience in agricultural communities facing adversity.
“At the end we will link the small holder farmers with companies that produce tuta absoluta solutions and we will also continue to follow up with the farmers to ensure what they produced are taken to the market.
“we aspire to empower farmers to overcome the challenges posed by the dry season and cultivate bountiful harvests sustainably”
The Technical Specialist, East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer(EWS-KT), Mr Sebastian Agada, the Technical Specialist, identified tuta absoluta as major setback to tomato farming that causes zero yield to farmers.
“Today we harvested fresh tomatoes after undergoing few weeks Tuta Absoluta Management amidst the pressing challenges faced by farmers during the dry season and the current scarcity of tomatoes in Nigeria”
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Speaking on behalf of the farmers, Malam Muhammad Sani, commended HortiNigeria for the gesture.
“The training have help us in reducing the risk and waste of tomato produce”