February 21, (THEWILL) – About 40,000 smallholder farmers, including women and youths, will be engaged in the Ogun State Economic Transformation Project (OGSTEP) to boost agricultural production, food security and job creation in the state.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr Dotun Sorunke, disclosed this while addressing participants at a stakeholders’ engagement forum on Agricultural Value Chain Development Process.
Sorunke said that smallholder farmers through OGSTEP, a public-private partnership World Bank-assisted initiative created by the Ogun State Government, would achieve more success in agricultural production.
He said the Dapo Abiodun administration had set in motion the mandate to increase private sector participation in the state’s economy by improving the agricultural production and productivity of smallholder farmers.
Speaking at the forum, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Agriculture, Dr Angel Adelaja-Kuye, stated that the project would achieve a gender balance with the inclusion of women and youths, as well as key players across various value-chains for farmers’ engagement.
The Project Coordinator, Mrs Mosun Owo-Odunsi, represented by a technical and vocational education and training specialist, Mr Fatai Osunsanya, emphasised the need to boost agriculture through a business-friendly environment.
The Acting Project Manager, OGSTEP, Dr Oluseyi Olugbire, said that OGSTEP would operate on farmer per hectare basis, with the government providing funding and infrastructural amenities on road, irrigation system, electrification and storage facilities for them.
Olugbire noted that farmers who cultivate maize, rice, cassava, sesame, soy bean, horticulture, aquaculture and poultry would partake in the programme, as such crops would be of great value to agricultural production in the state.
Earlier, the Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Ogun State Chapter, Alhaja Lola Kushimo, lauded the state government for the initiative, which is aimed at improving the livelihood of farmers.
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