Kano Agro-Project Empowers Farmers with Mechanization and Higher Yields

Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project (KSADP) Transforms Agriculture and Livelihoods

The Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project (KSADP), designed to promote inclusive economic growth, especially among women and youth, has significantly boosted productivity, mechanisation, and income among smallholder farmers in the state. The initiative aims to transform smallholder farming into a viable enterprise by strengthening commodity value chains to tackle rural poverty, food insecurity, and unemployment.

Five years after its launch, many farmers in Kano State say they are witnessing unprecedented improvements in yield and agricultural modernisation. This transformation is attributed to the project's comprehensive approach, which includes training, equipment distribution, and infrastructure development.

Training and Support for Farmers

Aminu Ibrahim Rimin Gado, an agricultural extension worker in Gwarzo Local Government Area, said KSADP has repositioned Kano as the state with the highest number of extension workers in Nigeria. He noted that the project trained 854 field staff, including extension agents and community-based trainers, and equipped them with 220 motorcycles and 380 digital tablets to better support 5,748 grain and vegetable production clusters.

Malama Shamsiyya Bello from Rano Local Government told Daily Trust that her women's group never imagined owning a hammer mill. With KSADP's intervention, they now operate their own mill, enabling members to earn additional income. So far, 397 women's groups, each with 27 members, have benefited from rice parboiling technologies.

Distribution of Tools and Machinery

To further reduce drudgery and boost productivity, the project has distributed a wide range of tools and machinery, including:

• 540 planters
• 401 fertiliser applicators
• 1,600 maize shellers
• 471 threshers
• 7,500 PICS bags
• 210 hermetic drums
• 7,000 vegetable crates
• 40 power tillers
• 15 tractors
• 20 combine harvesters
• Nine modular rice mills

Alhaji Nazifi Ado Doguwa is among 98 farmers who received free tractors from the project to enhance their farming operations. He said he never imagined owning a tractor. "It still feels like a dream. I know no one, I lobbied no one, yet I was given a tractor based on the project's assessment of my farm operations. This will transform agriculture in my community. We have never witnessed such support before, and we will ensure it doesn't fail," he said.

Infrastructure and Economic Growth

KSADP's Kano State Project Coordinator, Alhaji Ibrahim Garba Muhammad, described the initiative as multi-dimensional. He disclosed that the project has constructed 100 milk collection centres at a cost of over N6 billion, developed 20 modern slaughterhouses worth over N2bn, established grazing reserves valued at more than N3bn to reduce farmer-herder conflicts, and expanded irrigation facilities at Watari and Kabo at a cost exceeding N5bn.

Over the past five years, he noted, the state has recorded tremendous increases in the yields of rice, maize, sorghum, millet, tomato, onion, and cabbage—amounting to 132,624 metric tonnes of additional production.

Strategic Partnerships and Future Plans

Speaking during the 2025 Media Field Day, KSADP-Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) Project Coordinator, Comrade Abdulrasheed Hamisu Kofarmata, described the initiative as a 'transformational journey' powered by strategic partnerships between the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), the Lives and Livelihoods Fund (LLF), and the Kano State Government.

He said the project has made remarkable progress across crops, livestock, agribusiness, and rural livelihoods, empowering thousands of men, women, and youth in all 44 local government areas. With SAA as the technical partner, KSADP strengthened extension delivery, expanded access to quality inputs, promoted climate-smart agriculture, and improved post-harvest management.

To date, 477,284 farmers have benefited directly from interventions across major crop value chains.

Kofarmata added that savings from the project's management unit are being reinvested into a new mechanisation phase, which includes 80 tractors, 28 combine harvesters, 1,900 solar pumps, 98 power tillers, seed drills, sprayers, transplanting machines, and other equipment. He also announced the establishment of three Agricultural Mechanisation Centres in Kura (Central Zone), Dambatta (Kano North), and Gaya (Kano South) to provide affordable mechanisation services statewide.

Empowerment and Economic Impact

"KSADP established and strengthened 11,225 marketing groups, empowered 1,100 agro-dealers, and supported 1,448 contract sprayers and 310 agri-agents. It facilitated billions of naira in market transactions, improved access to finance for 240 women and youth agripreneurs, and created thousands of indirect jobs in transportation, processing, and aggregation. Notably, smallholder farmers' income has risen to N972,462 per hectare, far above the initial baseline," he stated.

Rimin Gado, who has served for more than two decades, described KSADP's achievements as unprecedented in the state's agricultural history. He emphasised the need for sustainability, adding that both the state government and stakeholders are committed to preserving the momentum for long-term agricultural growth.