Nasarawa state is set to commission a one hundred million naira rice processing plant under the federal government negotiated international coorporation with japan.

Inspecting the plant in Lafia, the state capital, Governor Tanko Al-Makura says the milling-plant will serve as training complex for cooperative societies, leading into the establishment of cottage rice milling centres across the state.

The project has installed capacity of milling 1.5 metric tonnes of rice per hour.

Nasarawa state is a highly agrarian state with a large percentage of its populace engaged in farming and agro-allied activities, and is one of the two states selected by the federal government to pilot the production of rice in commercial quantity in the country.

The federal government had an agreement with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on the construction of a modern rice milling plant in Nasarawa state, where rice farmers from across the state will have their produce milled directly from this plant to encourage local rice production.

The Nasarawa state government provided the building housing the plant at the cost of fifty five million naira while the Japanese government provided the equipment, worth forty five million naira.