Katsina State Government has strengthened its agricultural mechanisation programme with the procurement of a mobile workshop truck designed to provide timely technical support and maintenance services for tractors deployed across the state.
The newly acquired facility was inspected by the Katsina State Governor Dikko Umaru Radda, as part of efforts to ensure that the state’s growing investment in mechanised agriculture is backed by an effective maintenance system capable of keeping agricultural machinery operational.
Speaking during the inspection, Governor Radda said the mobile workshop would provide the basic technical support required to strengthen the state’s agricultural mechanisation programme and minimise disruptions caused by mechanical faults.
He explained that the truck would be stationed at the Katsina State Agricultural Mechanisation Centre, where it would operate as a mobile repair unit for the 400 tractors procured by the administration.
According to him, whenever any of the tractors develops a mechanical fault anywhere across the state, the mobile workshop would be deployed from the centre to the affected location to undertake the necessary repairs and maintenance.
The arrangement is expected to reduce the time and logistical challenges involved in moving faulty tractors over long distances for repairs, thereby enabling technical personnel to respond more quickly to breakdowns.
Governor Radda said the initiative would help reduce equipment downtime and ensure that the tractors remain operational, particularly during critical farming seasons when timely access to agricultural machinery is essential to farming activities.
The mobile workshop is also expected to strengthen the technical infrastructure supporting the state’s mechanisation programme, ensuring that the investment in tractors is complemented by a sustainable system for their maintenance and effective utilisation.
The Coordinator of the Agricultural Development Unit in the Governor’s Office Dr. Suleiman Umar who oversees KASPA and the Agricultural Mechanisation Programme said the procurement was aimed not only at maintaining the tractors but also at improving the technical capabilities of men and women working in the state’s mechanisation sector.
Dr. Umar said the initiative would provide an opportunity to strengthen the skills and responsiveness of personnel involved in the maintenance of agricultural machinery, thereby supporting the smooth operation of mechanised farming activities across the state. He added that improved technical support would further strengthen the state government’s resolve to make agricultural mechanisation more attractive to the farming population and significantly reduce the physical drudgery associated with traditional farming methods.
The mobile workshop forms part of the broader effort to ensure that the benefits of mechanised agriculture are sustained beyond the procurement of tractors by providing the technical support necessary to keep the equipment functional and accessible to farmers.
