Farming communities across Kano State are gaining access to more reliable irrigation through federal intervention focused on three dams: Tiga, Challawa Gorge and Kafin Chiri. The Ecological Project Office, under the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation as part of President Bola Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda, oversees the initiative, while the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture provides agricultural technical support. At Kafin Chiri, the main canal rehabilitation was 80 per cent complete when assessed, though work on distribution and field channels continues.
For farmers like Faruku Musa Haruna in Kumfada, Garko Local Government Area, the change is immediate. Previously, farmers pooled money to buy plastic sheets to trap rainwater for small-scale dry-season plots. Now, Haruna grows carrots followed by onions, tomatoes and peppers on the same land, and plans to add rice and wheat. He no longer needs a generator to pump water. Yet agricultural support extends beyond water alone. IITA's intervention covers water management, crop management, soil fertility and improved farming practices across 16 local government areas and has reached 1,890 beneficiaries overall, including 501 smallholder farmers who received training through eight farmer field schools and 86 demonstration plots.
Professor Lucky Osabuohien Omoigui, a plant breeding and genetics specialist at IITA's Kano station, stresses that farmers need training to use water effectively and productively. He notes that some farmers initially hesitated to make land available for demonstrations, which is understandable when households depend on their harvests. Demonstration plots allow techniques and varieties to be tested under local conditions. Omoigui warns that repeatedly growing cereals on the same field can deplete soil fertility, advocating cereal-legume rotations and appropriate fertiliser management. He cautions that productive conclusions about adoption, productivity and income require evidence across successive seasons, likely visible in two or three years.
Road improvements complement irrigation gains. Abdullahi Hamza, a farmer in Gana, recalls how poor road conditions damaged onions during trips to market. Repairs have made transport by motorcycle or car easier. Hafsat Yakubu, a businesswoman in Kwanar-Dangora, says drainage improvements have made access easier and helped her business. At Darki, a 1.5-kilometre market bypass intended to ease Thursday congestion was under construction. In Sumaila town, residents describe how erosion-control infrastructure and road construction have improved accessibility after gully erosion threatened homes and inaccessible roads forced car owners to park outside their neighbourhood.
Lasting success depends on maintenance and fair access to water. The Hadejia Jama'are River Basin Development Authority has supported engagement with water user associations and dam managers on operations and maintenance, but these arrangements must continue functioning over successive seasons. Farmers need workable rules for sharing water and resolving disputes. For households in farming communities, better irrigation and roads could improve income from more frequent harvests and more reliable market access, but only if training, maintenance and fair water distribution are sustained beyond the initial intervention.