Yobe, MardiCorp Explore Partnership on Irrigation, Under-Exploited Crops -Bego
The Yobe State Government is exploring a partnership with Marditech Corporation, a Malaysian Agro-Industrial Firm focussing on research and innovation in food production and agriculture, to provide irrigation extension service training to technical staff and irrigation farmers, as the Yobe State Special Irrigation Schemes in Nguru Lake, Boloram, and Mugura Garin Gada are made ready for take-off.
H.E Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam revealed this today following a meeting with the executive chairman of Marditech Corporation in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Haji Zolkifili Mahmud and other top management staff of the company.
The governor, who was given a detailed briefing on the range of services that MardiCorp provides, said the state government has established irrigation schemes in Nguru Lake, Mugura Garin Gada and Boloram areas of Nguru and Gaidam local governments respectively covering an initial (but expandable) land area of over 600 hectares and is poised to ensure that food production is greatly enhanced in the state.
“This is why we are exploring this partnership. Our intention is to see whether we can engage the services of MardiCorp in training our extension workers and irrigation farmers tapping from the company’s long years of experience and expertise across many countries so that the take-off of our irrigation schemes could be more successful”, the governor said.
MardiCorp had previously worked in several countries in Africa and Asia, including in Kano, Ogun and Ondo States in Nigeria.
MardiCorp CEO Haji Zolkifili Mahmud said in addition to irrigation service, his company will propose to “transform agriculture in Yobe State”, especially through commodity crop development including vegetables, livestock, the establishment of model farm estates, and big data and analytics for agro-trade.
“The model farm estates will seek to create entrepreneurship in young agric graduates by creating enabling environment with modern farming practices”, Mahmud said.
Following suggestions by H.E Gov. Gaidam, Haji Zolkifili Mahmud said MardiCorp will also seek to undertake research in “under-exploited crops” in Yobe such as the doum palm (Hyphaene thebaica also called goruba in Hausa) with a view to finding whether they can be enhanced and grown on a commercial scale.
The photos below are from the meeting at Marditech headquarters earlier today. H.E Gov. Gaidam is seated with MardiCorp CEO Haji Zulkifili Mahmud (centre). MardiCoro top management is on the right while members of H.E Gov. Gaidam’s entourage on the left.
Source: Yobe state Gov’t
