Farmers in Zamfara have commended Sen. Abdul’aziz Yari (APC-Zamfara) for facilitating the ongoing rehabilitation of Bakalori Dam under the Sokoto Rima River Basin Development Authority (SRRBDA).
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Bakalori Dam, located in Maradun Local Government Area of Zamfara, is a major embankment dam and a tributary of River Rima.
NAN also reports that the Bakalori Irrigation Scheme suffered for many years from faulty irrigation gates, siltation and blocked secondary drains, crippling dry-season farming and threatening food production.
Yari, who is the Chairman, Senate Committee on Water Resources, represents Zamfara West Senatorial District in the Senate.
The Project Manager of the Bakolori Irrigation Scheme, Alhaji Umar Adamu, while speaking to journalists at the rehabilitation site on Friday, described the intervention as timely, adding that its impact could not be quantified.
Adamu said the ongoing rehabilitation work at the dam would significantly impact food production and food security in the country.
“When completed, the rehabilitation is expected to restore full water flow to thousands of hectares of farmland and boost rice production, returning Bakolori to its status as the food basket of Zamfara,” he explained.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the Bakolori Water Users Association, Alhaji Yakubu Abubakar, described the intervention as a rescue initiative for irrigation farmers under the Bakalori Dam.
Abubakar noted that over 80,000 registered members and unregistered farmers were benefiting from the Bakalori Dam through the association.
“Yari has proven to be a representative who always listens to people at the grassroots.
“We appreciate Sen. Yari and the Federal Government for this wonderful intervention.
“On behalf of the thousands of members of this association, I want to declare our support for Sen. Yari in delivering the mandate as Director-General of the Presidential Campaign Council of the All Progressives Congress (APC),” Abubakar said.
According to an official of Sen. Yari’s constituency office in Talata Mafara, Dahiru Samaila, “On Oct. 4, the Water Users Association of Nigeria forwarded a request letter to Sen. Yari seeking his urgent intervention on the current situation of Bakalori Dam.
“On receiving the request letter, Yari directed K.K Technologies Limited to lead immediate rehabilitation works on the dam.
“Yari has also promised to follow up with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation to provide a lasting solution to the current situation of the dam.
“Beyond the repairs, the intervention will also support farmers with fertiliser, tractors, power tillers, combine harvesters, and semi and motorised transplanters, with a solid arrangement for maintenance and judicious use,” Samaila explained.
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