The 15 wagons carrying about 500 cows which left Gusau, Zamfara State on Thursday, arrived Oko-Oba, Lagos this afternoon, some hours ahead of schedule.

Reacting to the development, Aliyu Abdulhameed, Managing Director of Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), described it as a pleasant surprise and a good omen for the innovative project of moving cattle from the North to the South by rail.

A statement by Bello Abdullahi Abba, NIRSAL Coordinator, Research and Strategy, quoted him as saying: “We are indeed happy to hear that the wagons have arrived ahead of schedule. We are very delighted that the historic train has arrived earlier than projected. It is a good omen and a further source of encouragement as we strive towards improving and deepening our Farm to Market Scheme.”

NIRSAL had two days ago in Gusau, flagged off the commencement of its National Farm to Market Scheme, which aims to provide low cost transport link between agricultural producers and consumers across the country with an initial focus on livestock movement from North to South by rail.

The event was witnessed by the Deputy Governor of Zamfara State, officials of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as well as representatives of international development partners and international financial institutions. Also present were representatives of banks, other private sector players, and livestock traders among others.

Under the scheme, NIRSAL, in line with its mandate to de-risk and incentivize investment into verified impactful projects across the agricultural value chain, will provide bank guarantees for the financing of critical requirements involved in the movement of the cattle including logistics and equipment. Connect Rail Services Ltd, a bulk freight and logistics service provider is the first technical partner on this aspect of the Farm to Market scheme.

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