The Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project had begun teaching 1,000 young people in Kano how to use rice straw, primarily for animal feed.

The program, funded by the Lives and Livelihoods Fund and the Islamic Development Bank, aims to give the targeted beneficiaries, who were primarily drawn from the state’s rice-producing communities, jobs and income.

KSADP’s project communication specialist, Ameen Yassar, provided a copy of the statement to The Punch on Friday.

Ibrahim Muhammad, the State Project Coordinator for KSADP, announced the start of the training on Thursday at Audu Bako College of Agriculture in Dambatta, according to Yassar.

“This training on rice straw utilisation is crucial for promoting sustainable agriculture and creating economic opportunities. By educating the youths about the various uses of rice straw instead of burning, such as composting and livestock feed, it can lead to reduced environmental pollution and increased income generation”, he said.

Apart from this, he said that with increased availability of the livestock feed from local rice fields, nomadism, which sometimes results in security challenges, will be minimised, adding that the initiative can potentially ensure improved relations between farmers and herders in Kano.

“It was realised that rice production in Kano is increasing, but the utilisation of rice straw is still minimal, with most farmers burning it to prepare the land for dry season farming or using it to thatch their roofs. 

However, the coordinator said, “Rice straw can be treated with urea and fed to livestock to achieve reasonable weight gains.”

The Provost of Audu Bako College of Agriculture, Muhammad Wailare, expressed his institution’s enthusiasm for co-organising the training. 

He highlighted that the beneficiaries would gain exposure to straightforward technologies for utilising rice straw, fostering income generation, promoting sustainable agricultural practices, and mitigating environmental pollution.

KSADP’s plan involves establishing 200 production hubs near irrigation schemes. Each group will receive grant/credit support for machinery, materials, and transportation to facilitate urea-treated rice straw feed production and sale.

Source: Punch