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S4C Testimonial: Tomatoes in Karfi

Yusuf Inuwa (22) is a young farmer from Karfi. (Pictured in the middle) Yusuf has managed the tomato demonstration for S4C. He is currently managing his parents farm on which he plants maize, millet, sorghum, tomato, garden egg, cucumber, watermelon and pepper. Yusuf himself specializes in tomato and maize, as he has been farming these crops since he was little. The main challenge Yusuf faces are diseases and pests. S4C has introduced him to an integrated pest-management approach that has helped overcome his pest-problems. Yusuf says: “I had no idea that there was a more advanced way of farming until I joined S4C. I have learned how to raise seedlings using a seedling tray and how to stake a tomato plant. It was also my first time using hybrid seeds and I am very impressed by the outcome: the yield was more than what we usually get when using local varieties, the fruits were much bigger and last much longer before perishing. Also, I had no difficulty selling them. A basket of tomatoes is usually sold at 3,500 but this time I sold it for 5,500.” Yusuf also mentions: “A farmer’s dream is to see his crops doing well without much spending and also getting more than what you expected in terms of profit.” The other farmers in his community could clearly differentiate between local varieties and the hybrid ones, and showed interest in learning more about this method of farming. Yusuf is currently training them on the use of the seedling tray, agricultural practice and safe use of pesticides.

S4C Testimonial: Farming onions in Gurum Mallam

Iliya Ado (45) is a professional farmer from Garum Mallam. (Pictured on the left) “My family is known for farming” he says. “Farming has been passed on for generations, it runs in my blood. Iliya farms onions, rice and maize. He also managed the S4C onion-demonstration in August 2019. During his 20 years of farming, Iliya has faced diseases and crop failure. He mentions: “I have learnt a very different way of planting onion, the modern bed making we are taught now is very different from our traditional bed making. I have also learnt that good agricultural practice is very important.” Iliya states that hybrid seeds are the best seeds for planting. “When we use our local variety, we just throw away the seeds because we are not sure how many will germinate. But now we use hybrid seeds, this is much easier. The germination rate is 98%, and after the harvest the crop stays fresh for a longer period of time – and that is a farmers dream! .” He advices other farmers to also adapt the use of hybrid seeds for better yield. He concludes: “I am looking forward to learning more modern ways of farming from Seeds4Change!”

S4C Testimonial: Farming watermelon in Karfi

Aliyu Muhammad (50) farms rice, watermelon, maize and cowpea in Karfi, Kano. He owns the family business and managed the watermelon-demonstration for S4C in August 2019. Aliyu says his main challenge was lack of technical design to manage his farm, and the high costs of the inputs, but when he joined the S4C-programme this was all provided for. He finds the most interesting part of the programme the ‘Capacity Building Trainings’: “The training was very helpful because I learnt things I did not know and would not have known if not for S4C. For example: good agricultural practices, safe use of pesticides, seeds selections and a lot more.” Aliyu also mentions: “Application of liquid fertilizer through the drip lines is a very useful knowhow I required. The rate at which the hybrid seeds germinate, compared to the local variety, is very good too.” Other farmers in Aliyu’s community are now also using hybrid seeds, and Aliyu his sharing his acquired knowledge with his fellow farmers.

S4C Testimonial: Cabbage farming in Mudawa

Musa Haladu Usman is a 20 year old Farmer from Mudawa. He was managing an S4C cabbage demonstration from August 2019-March 2020. Musa took over the family farming-business since he was 16. He says he liked the farming and found it very interesting, but also difficult because of the heavy labour involved. Musa specializes in rice, tomato, cabbage and maize. The farm is owned by his uncle, but Musa manages everything.

As a young farmer, Musa found farming challenging because of the traditional way of farming in his community. But since his involvement in S4C, farming has become more interesting for him as a more advanced method of farming was introduced to him. He mentions: “The new technologies introduced by S4C are really impressive,especially the drip irrigation-system and the use of hybrid seeds instead of their local variety.” Musa says he has learnt a lot since his involvement with S4C, such as making beds, transplanting, spraying and also using chemicals to control certain diseases and insects. “Even though the hybrid seeds cost more than the local seeds, it is worth it because at the end you will get your gain”, he says. “The quality of the seeds, the early germination, resistance to disease and also the great yield are what impresses me.” Musa mentions that a bag of cabbage is sold at the rate of 4,500 NGN per bag but that he sells the hybrid cabbages at the rate of 6,000 NGN per bag. Even though Musa harvested in a period of cabbage-glut, he still managed to get a good price at the market.

S4C Testimonial: Sweet pepper farming in Garum Babba, Kano, Nigeria

Sanusi Lawan Isa is a 31 years old vegetable farmer from Garum Babba village in Kano state, He grows tomato, peppers, onions, cabbages, watermelon and garden egg. Sanusi has a great passion for farming, at the age of 15 he set up his own farm. Since then, he faced challenges such as a of lack of capital, excess disease and lack of market to sell his crops. In August 2019, Sanusi joined the S4C program and he hosted a successful sweet pepper demo in Garum Babba. This was a turning point in his farming business as since August, he applied the knowledge he learnt from the S4C capacity building trainings to improve his farming system. It enlightened him more on the selection of seeds, raising of a nursery, transplanting, application of chemicals and the use of drip lines. “In our village we all use the traditional method of flood/ furrow irrigation, but S4C introduced drip irrigation which is far better and precise than our local method of irrigation”. As part of the program, Sanusi adopted the use of hybrid seeds introduced to him by S4C. Compared to the local seeds, the hybrid seeds are high yielding and resistant to disease Therefore, he had little or no problem with marketing because the hybrid produce stands out compared to the vegetable crops produced with local seeds. The vegetables produced with hybrids carry big fruits and can stay for a longer period before getting spoiled. When he sold the fruits, the price he got was almost 1,5 times higher (3500 NGN per basket) than the price of the local pepper (2600 NGN per basket) which he normally produces. “In the history of my pepper farming this is the best yield and sale I made in my life”. Sanusi therefore advices farmers to adopt the use of hybrid seeds