Concerning the heavy floods that submerged thousands of hectares of farmlands and houses in Kebbi State and destroyed lives, President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed concern.
According to a statement by the presidential spokesman, Malam Garba Shehu, the president has expressed his sadness over the incident because it constitutes a setback in the rice production of the country.
“Kebbi State is the focal point of our policy to produce rice locally as part of this administration’s commitment to agricultural revival which suffered relative neglect in favour of food importation.
“With the loss of six lives and still counting; thousands of hectares of land flooded and estimated economic loss of more than N1 billion by rice farmers in Kebbi State, we face a major setback in our efforts to boost local food production.
“This bad news couldn’t have come at a worse time for our farmers and other Nigerians who looked forward to a bumper harvest this year in order to reduce the current astronomical rise in the costs of food items in the markets.”
The president also sympathised with the bereaved families saying that he will work closely with the Kebbi State Government to bring relief to the victims.
