The Federal Executive Council (FEC) Wednesday approved N13.9 billion for the purchase of insecticides for pest control in states affected by quailer birds.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Sabo Nanono, said this while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the weekly FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said the approval also covers purchase of drugs for the treatment of animal diseases like rabies.
“One memo from the federal Ministry of Agriculture and that was on pest control, animal diseases like rabies, lung diseases, liver diseases, as well as quiller birds that have been disturbing farmers especially in the North-Eastern part of the country.
“Infact in all this there are 12 frontline states that are being affected by quiller birds, grasshoppers, which have started protruding the North-West and in the North-East.”
The Agriculture Minister said the prevalence of rabies has risen quite substantially with even death in some cases.
“These are matter that the federal government has taken very serious and has approved an intervention fund of N13.9 billion for these,” he said.
The minister, who also gave the ministry’s scorecard to the Federal Executive Council, said government intends to recruit 75,000 extension workers in the next two years to boost agriculture activities across the country.
