Dele Ogunyemi
12 November 2009
Ibadan — Oyo State Government has concluded arrangements to launch farmers empowerment programme across the state to tackle the effects of the economic meltdown in the state.
The farmers empowerment programme will be kick-started this weekend in 14 of the 33 Local Government areas of the state.
Disclosing this while briefing journalists in Ibadan Tuesday, the consultant in charge of the farmers empowerment project and Coordinator of LAOGRAPH Group, Mr. Festus Alade hinted that Oyo state government was poised to eradicate hunger all over the state through the new initiative which is one of the 13-Point Agenda of Governor Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala's administration.
Under the Farmers Empowerment Programme, Alade said, the state government, through the Ministry of Establishment, Training and Poverty Alleviation would build up the capacity of farmers in the state to enable them achieve their potentialities by engaging in skill acquisition via the breeding of animals, snails and bee and other available natural gifts in their surroundings.
He said that the beneficiaries would be trained on ways of making use of their farm products and others around them to be attractive to both foreign and local investors
According to him, the present administration in the state is determined to sustain the on-going moves with a view to further re-branding Oyo State for the better.
He said: "This time around that the economy is melting down globally, we are determined to go back to the farm and bring our own economy up. With what we have here, if we can make good use of them, I am very optimistic that our economy would definitely go up. Let us go back to the land. Farming is the way out, and we are getting there."
Mr. Alade said that the farmers empowerment would be replicated in all other local governments before the end of the year. "By the time we finish with the 14, we would know how and when to move to the other areas in the state," he said.
The State College of Agriculture, Igboora and other allied farm settlements all over the state would be involved in the farmers empowerment programme while all the local governments in the state are being encouraged to support farmers in their areas on the need to participate effectively, Alade said.
Meanwhile, a 14-week zonal meetings of the stakeholders has been organised to ensure the success of the farmers empowerment programme.
The state government through its Poverty Alleviation Schemes, had within the past one year created self-sustaining jobs for thousands of unemployed youths and women through its various skill acquisition trainings especially in the areas of baking, chalk making, event decoration, soap making, nylon making, bead makin, pop corn and such others.
"We need to focus on the training of our women because the rate of poverty among the women amounts to two third of the world population and, more so, if we want peace at our homes, there is the need to tackle poverty among our women," he said.
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