Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan
The Oyo State Coordinator, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Florence Kakulu, has said the Federal Government is committed to continue to make the agricultural sector a pivot for economic stability in diversifying, generating employment and creating wealth in the country.
She said this yesterday at the official launching of the first batch of tractors, tools and implement procured by the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Oyo State chapter, in Ibadan, the state capital.
She stated that the country can become a food secured nation with its vast agricultural land, noting that towards achieving this the ministry is creating the enabling environment by ensuring access to agricultural machinery, inputs and loans to support farmers.
Kakulu disclosed that the ministry had over the years imbibed the culture of promoting best practices in agriculture development through improving access of farmers to inputs and credit facilities in rural areas, employment generation, building a national extension system, provision of rural infrastructural facilities to rural areas and driving agriculture through commodity value chain approach.
According to her: “The ministry has allocated various agricultural implements and equipment to Oyo State farmers through All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) over the years in order to ensure that these inputs get to the hand of the practicing farmers, the Federal Government has equally provided an enabling environment to ensure farmers have access to the needed implements just like what we are launching here today.”
The state Chairman of AFAN, Mr. John Olateru, urged the Federal Government to address the increasing high rate of foreign exchange, lamenting that the situation has brought excruciating pain on farmers and Nigerians as a whole with goods getting out of the reach of the poor in the society.
He assured that the launching of the farming tools is the beginning of new thing in the state, insisting that despite the scarcity of foreign exchange the association remains undaunted in the courage to continue to assist farmers to get implements that will increase their yields.
He assured that the launching of the farming tools is the beginning of new thing in the state, insisting that despite the scarcity of foreign exchange the association remains undaunted in the courage to continue to assist farmers to get implements that will increase their yields.
