TWO DAYS TRAINING WORKSHOP ON THE ZONAL PROMOTION OF ORGANIC FERTILIZER AND USE AT THE LOCAL LEVELS USING ECO-FRIENDLY AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGIES.

The department of Farm Input Support Service (FISS) of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development embarked on two days training workshop at three different locations across the geo-political zones to enlighten farmers at the zonal level on the need for the adoption of organic fertilizer production and the use of eco-friendly agricultural technologies.

For the North Central & South-West, the training took place at Agric Show Ground Along Abuja-Keffi Highway Karu LGA Nasarawa State, while that of South-South & South-East was held at Agricultural Transformation Agenda Office Abakaliki Ebonyi State. The North-West & North-East were not left out as theres took place at Federal Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development BCGA Bogo Biu Road Gombe. The training which ran concurrently at the three different locations was held on the 5^th-6^th of October 2022.

In his opening remark, the Director of the Farm Input Support Services Department (FSSD) Mr. Kwaido M. S. who was ably represented by the Deputy Director of Input Use & NAGS&AP Division of the FISS Department Mr. Ishaku Ardo Buba, Deputy Director FRIM Division of FISS Mr. Yahaya Opago and Deputy Director Quality Control Division Mr. Adamu Saleh at the various locations respectively stated that the program provides ample opportunity for increased advocacy for the adoption of organic fertilizer use in Nigeria and also helps to curtail the problem of rejection of Nigerian produce in the international markets.

He affirmed the belief that Nigerian farmers are well prepared to adopt the use of organic fertilizer as the country is blessed with abundant raw materials such as plant residues, poultry by-products, livestock waste, biogas residue, and agricultural by-products that are readily available locally.

He further reminded the farmers that the increasing demand for organic produce locally is an indication that the sector has high growth potential, and the importation of organic products will be bridged to generate wealth and employment, particularly among the youth. Also that the incident of the Russian-Ukraine war has made it difficult to import organic raw materials and also the difficulty in accessing foreign exchange has made it necessary to look inward and pay attention to the local preparation of these fertilizers using organic and eco-friendly raw materials sourced locally, thereby reducing the importation cost of foreign fertilizers and the production cost of agricultural produce in the country, improve soil conditions, extend the shelf life of agricultural produce, create employment and improve the general livelihood of farmers and the general populace.

The second day of the program was mainly to sensitize the farmers on the provision of the National Fertilizer Quality Control (NFQC) Act 2019 and Regulations, 2020.