Further on strategic partnership, on October16, 2020, the state received some project team members of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture/World Bank Assisted Agro-Processing, Agricultural Productivity Enhancement and Livelihood Improvement (APPEALS) project, who were on a Scoping Mission to Ogun State.
The APPEALS Project is designed to improve the agricultural productivity of small and medium commercial farmers and increase value addition of priority agricultural value chains such as rice, cassava, cocoa, maize, aquaculture, and others. The project targets about 10,000 project beneficiaries, mostly farmers and cooperative societies, with 35% of them to be women and youths. Prince Abiodun recently approved Ogun State’s participation in the FMARD/World Bank Assisted APPEALS expansion project.
OGUN-CBN ANCHOR BORROWERS PROGRAMME FOR 1,065 YOUNG CASSAVA FARMERS
On specific cassava intervention, the CBN/Wema Bank/Nigeria Cassava Growers Association/Ogun State Anchor Borrowers Programme linked the third batch of 1,065 Young Cassava Production farmers to credit amounting to N234,590,745 (N220,273 per farmer) across the 20 LGAs of the state, on 8th October, 2020. These farmers have also been linked to inputs (herbicides, agrochemicals and improved planting materials), and guaranteed markets.
This third batch release was for young people, whom Prince Abiodun had approved land clearing for in Nine (9) locations namely: Apojola, Odeda LGA; Asa, Ewekoro LGA; Ojoowo/Ijebu Igbo, Ijebu North LGA; Omogbawojo, Odogbolu LGA; Pagbonrin, Imeko-Afon LGA; Itoro, Yewa South LGA; Ojere Village, Obafemi Owode LGA; Ikenne Dairy Farm, Ikenne LGA; and Obafemi Town, Obafemi Owode LGA.
Other registered farmers, including young people, who are yet to be linked to credit under the Anchor Borrowers Programme are advised to follow, and regard updates only from the authorized source, which is, Ogun State Ministry of Agriculture.
Also, work is in progress for farmers who are close to land clearing sites in Afon Farm Estate, Imeko-Afon LGA and Atoba, Remo North LGA. These have been verified by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with physical and digital geotagging. Meanwhile, land clearing and preparation, verifications and geo-tagging by the Ogun State Ministry of Agriculture, CBN and other stakeholders, are ongoing.
Supports for Young Farmers, Export Promotion
Taking pride in her comparative natural advantage of arable land, proximity to Lagos and housing of end user companies, Ogun State is supporting young rice and cassava farmers for food security, job creation and export production.
Ogun State is one of the leading participants in the IFAD/FG Value Chain Programme and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Anchor Borrowers Programme, even as it is the largest producer of cassava in Nigeria, as well as the largest producer of rice in southwestern Nigeria.
According to the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr. Adeola Odedina, the “Central Bank has disbursed Seven Hundred Million Naira (N700,000,000) to five thousand, one hundred young farmers to grow cassava and another three hundred million naira (N300,000,000) to 1,000 young rice farmers within a season, a process that was facilitated by the State Government, in collaboration with farmers’ organizations. Some of the beneficiaries were drawn from the state’s job portal.”
The commissioner added that under the IFAD/FG Value Chain Programme, the sum of three hundred and sixty million Naira (N360,000,000) was also disbursed as credit linkage to 8,000 people to grow rice and cassava. The Commissioner noted that this is happening for the first time in the history of Ogun State.
These are in line with the commitment of the state government under the leadership of Prince Abiodun to create self-sustainability, make raw materials available for industries, promote export to other states and countries, and create jobs.
Dr. Odedina stated that the reconstruction of roads in the state was not unconnected to the support that the government was providing for off-takers and processors in the agriculture sector. He added that the government was not focusing on urban areas only, but also semi-urban and rural areas to ease movement of raw materials, farm produce and finished goods.
