Kaduna: El’rufai commissions DFID-assisted milk, yoghurt processing plant

NAN

Kaduna State Government has commissioned a 500 litre per day capacity rural milk processing plant in Ladugga grazing reserve.

The plant commissioned by Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe, has the capability of processing 500 litres of raw milk into yoghurt. The plant was set up by the community’s cooperative – Kachia Bollol Ndurgol with the technical and financial support from the Business Innovation Facility (BIF), a DFID funded project.

Speaking at the commissioning of the plant, deputy governor, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe who represented Gov Nasir El’rufai, said that the introduction of the Napier grass, establishment of homestead and community pasture lots across the whole grazing reserve were worth replicating across Kaduna State and Nigeria as a whole. She commended the project for being a unique concept because of the community focused approach adopted by the BIF. The representative of the Governor said that such a focus was important as it promotes full community participation and ownership.

She commended the DFID for its continued support of Kaduna State government and stated that the introduction of Napier grass and rural milk processing initiative has helped in curbing the herder farmer conflict arising from cattle movement. In his speech, the Kaduna State Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr. Manzo Maigari, commended the sponsors of the rural milk processing project, which he noted, has high social impact and value for money.

“It is not everything you throw money at that yields this kind of result,” he said.

He thanked the DFID for being a dependable partner in the development and progress of the state.

In his remarks, the Country Director of BIF, Mr. Soji Apampa, said that the rural milk processing plant was the result of the willingness of the community to adopt improved feed for their cattle in the form of Napier grass introduced by the BIF. Apampa explained that the improved feed led to milk yield increases, making it necessary for the BIF to support the community co-operative with training in milk handling, processing and collection.

He mentioned that the BIF also linked the co-operative with a social impact investor Mobihive, who provided 50 percent of the cost of the milk processing plant as a loan while BIF support matched the loan with a grant, which covered the rest of the cost of setting up the plant.