The federal government, Thursday, said it has paid N800 million insurance claims through the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) to 5 million farmers across the country.
Executive director Operation NAIC Mr. Bashir Babajo disclosed this when he led a team of the corporation on a courtesy call to government house, Lafia, the Nasarawa state capital.
He said the amount was shared among 5 million farmers who suffered various setbacks in their farms as a result of natural course.
He said the government at various levels shared the percent of losses incurred by insured farmers across the country.
“The scheme was launched in 1987 by federal government to restore the confidence and productivity of Nigerian farmers who suffered losses as a result of natural disaster such as flood, drought, pest and diseases,” he said.
He further said the scheme has subsidised some categories of crops and livestock items to the tune of fifty percent to encourage farmers to appreciate the scheme.
Babajo added that Nasarawa state has been listed among states that qualified as the food basket of the nation in all ramifications while urging the state government to sensitise its farmers.
He appealed to the Nasarawa state government to key into the scheme by encouraging farmers in the state to insure the crops and their produce so as to benefit from the scheme.
In a remark, Governor Abdullahi Sule said his administration had given much priority to agriculture and farmers aimed at providing sufficients food to feed the people of the state and the country ln general.
According to him, investors such Dangote, Azman, Flour Mills among other had been given hecters of lands for farming and other agricultural activities ln Awe, Doma, Wamba Karu and Nasarawa local government areas of the state which he said has crested jobs for the unemployed youths.
The governor also assured that the state government would pay it’s counterpart fund to enable farmers regain the losses suffered in their farm land.
