Governor Mohammed Abubakar (represented by the state commissioner of Agriculture and National Resources of Bauchi State during the 2017 Fadama III promised additional financing for dry season rice farming at Konkiyel village in Darazo local government area of the state.

He said the state planned to double its effort from 2016 (2,500 was cultivated in 2016) by assisting its farmers to cultivate more land and increase their output.

According to the Commissioner, Bauchi state was the only state in the North- East that was privileged with the mandate of the national FADAMA development project to produce rice and sorghum. He also said that the state government has approved the payment of its annual counterpart contribution of ₦35 million.

According to him, “the world bank through the National Fadama Development Project provided the sum of $200 million for the implementation of the Fadama III additional financing in some selected states, Bauchi inclusive. The objective of the additional financing is to boost dry season farming as well as increased the income of the land users on sustainable manner”.

Governor Abubakar went on further to say that his government has also paid ₦20 million counterpart fund for the national food security and livelihood emergency support under the same Fadama III project for the benefit of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) that have chosen the state as their new home.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development who was represented by one of the ministry members of staffs, Muhammed Yusuf said that the programme is a collaborative effort of the federal Government and the world Bank to scale up food production and generate employment for youths.

He said the government has given special attention to four staple crops which include rice, sorghum, cassava, and tomatoes. He encouraged states that have been identified with the potentials of producing any of these crops to take advantage of this opportunity by concentrating their strengths into the production of these crops as these will drive up their internal generated revenue (IGR).