By Dipo Olowookere
Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano State on Wednesday commissioned four brand new vehicles procured by the Kano State Agricultural Supply Company (KASCO) for conveying farm inputs.
The vehicles included two trucks capable of carrying 40 metric tonnes each, one carry-go bus and a pick up van valued at N40 million.
During the commissioning, the Governor noted that his administration’s decision to re-organize the company after several years of being comatose was yielding result as the company was now fully operational and generating profit.
“The company now has about N600 million in its kitty and is installing a new production line worth N500 million,” Mr Ganduje said, adding that its management has repaid the loan it collected from the state government with appreciable profit.
The Governor also expressed happiness that the company has taken advantage of the agreement between Nigeria and Morocco on fertilizer supply to boost local production of the commodity, pointing out that “the company now produces fertilizer not only for Kano but also for Kebbi, Jigawa, Katsina and Niger States”.
In his remarks, Managing Director of KASCO, Mr Bala Muhammad, told the Governor that “only yesterday, we repaid the N300 million loan we borrowed from the state government in 2105 together with a profit of N200 million.”
Besides, the Managing Director announced that the management was currently test running its newly acquired blending plant, stressing that apart from purchasing the new vehicles, he added that the company also refurbished a number of operational vehicles.
He also disclosed that the company had renovated its abandoned stores across the state and is now making fertilizer available to the door steps of the ordinary farmer, without much stress.
Adedapo Adesanya