Lagos — The Yobe State Government has purchased 25,000 tonnes of assorted grain for storage in its strategic grains reserve, according to Alhaji Musa Dumburi, the Commissioner for Agriculture. He told newsmen in Damaturu yesterday that government had made adequate provisions to stock silos across the state.

"We have the grains stocked in Gashua, Fune, Fika, Damaturu and Geidam to ensure that no part of the state was left out. The grains will be sold to the public at subsidised rates during the critical periods at the end of the planting season, when farmers do not have grains in stock," he said.

Dumburi said the grains consisted of maize, millet and sorghum, adding that government would purchase more, if necessary, to ensure food security in the state. He said government had also provided farm inputs at subsidised rates to farmers, to encourage them in producing high yields.

"Tractors, improved seedlings, herbicides and chemicals and assorted fertiliser have also been made available to farmers across the state," he added. Correspondents report that prices of grains have remained stable in markets across the state, compared to what obtained during the same period last year. Mallam Ali Hussaini, a grains merchant in Damaturu, told newsmen. "In June last year, we sold 100 kilogramme bag of maize for between N8,500 and N9,000 but today, it is being sold for between N6,000 and N6,500."

(NAN)