By Musdapha Ilo, Maiduguri

About 40, 000 youth in Yobe state will benefit from the state government’s planned partnership with a Chinese firm in the area of irrigation agriculture, the state government has said.

The Yobe state governor, Ibrahim Gaidam, who is currently on an official visit to China on the invitation of the country’s investors, is expected to finalise agreements on the partnership.

According to a statement by his spokesperson, Abdullahi Bego, the effort was aimed at ensuring that the youth are self-reliant.

“Irrigation agriculture is very significant in unleashing the enthusiasm and capacity of our youth for self-reliance. We are very much committed to using irrigation as another catalyst for helping to empower our youths. This is why we came here to establish wide ranging partnerships that will accelerate irrigation agriculture in our State,” the statement said.

The statement added that the governor had already held discussions with a number of companies, including Rainfine (Dalian) Irrigation Company Ltd, a company that specializes in the manufacture, installation and training of people in centre pivot irrigation technology.

“We are particularly interested in modern centre-pivot irrigation where a single machine or a cluster of machines can irrigate large expanses of land. We can use this all year round to irrigate farmlands and produce crops that will positively impact the lives and future of our youths and improve on our economy in the long term,”said the statement.

“I am confident we can begin this before the year runs out; precisely within the next three months. We have it in our budget for the year and we are determined to carry it through”, His Excellency the governor said after inspecting irrigation equipment on the factory floor of Rainfine Irrigation Company in Dalian.”

Bego said a committee had been set up under the leadership of a former permanent secretary in the state ministry of Agriculture, Gambomi Goni, to work out modalities on the execution of the partnership as well as locate suitable locations within the state for the projects.

The governor was also said to be wooing Chinese investors in the area of infrastructural development into Damaturu, the state capital, with discussions already held with Peng Shigou, chairman of China International Engineering Company Ltd, a company experienced in road, bridge and other engineering constructions.