Food security: We’ll dedicate 2025 budget for agriculture development — Ekiti gov

Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji has disclosed that the state’s budget for 2025 would focus more on agriculture, in an effort to ensure food sufficiency and make Ekiti the food basket of the country.

Oyebanji restated his administration’s commitment to food security for residents of the state through various collaborations with investors in agribusiness and young farmers in the state.

The governor spoke at the weekend while inspecting the Bring Youth Back into Agriculture Project farms in Oke-Ako Ekiti, Iyemero Ekiti and Gede in the North senatorial districts

The Governor who was accompanied on the visit by some top government officials explained that his administration would ensure that next year’s budget cycle has enough allocations for agriculture in line with the agenda of President Bola Tinubu.

While noting that his government’s deliberate investment in agriculture was already yielding the desired positive results, the Governor said his government in the last two years, had prioritized investment in agriculture, boost capacity of farmers and create a market for farm produce as part of efforts to enhance food production and tackle food insecurity.

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Oyebanji also expressed appreciation to President Tinubu for providing necessary impetus for the state to thrive in agriculture and other sectors, and promised that his administration will continue to provide economic opportunities for youths in the state and position them to be employers of labour.

He added that the State has also improved on its agricultural policies and guaranteed the needed infrastructure and support to drive the State’s agriculture development plans, adding that his administration was looking at ways to scale up food production and make the state self-reliant.

Speaking further, Oyebanji said the 2025 budget , aside focusing on agriculture and food security, would prioritize the welfare of citizens, saying his administration in the last two years had done a lot in infrastructure.

He also stressed that he would de-risk the agricultural value chain by scaling up security, provide electricity and rehabilitate roads to farms.

He stated, ” I’m superbly excited on the outcome of agriculture strategy, few months ago, we flagged off this programme, ‘bring back our youths into agriculture’ and I believe strongly that the only way to prosperity is productivity and to bring our youths back to work, government has to provide the platforms for them.

“We partnered with our people and YSJ, a private sector agric company to work out a strategy of bringing back our youths to agric where the government cleared land for them free of charge, subsidized inputs by fifty percent.

“I am just going round today to see the outcome of this effort and I am happy that it has turned round this way.

“What this has taught me is the fact that Ekiti youths are not lazy, Ekiti youths are productive, they can work and what they need is just the platform.

“I have always been saying that Ekiti can rival any states in the federation, but as a government, we need to provide the platform for people to exhibit their potentials and this is what we have done.

“Next year’s budget is going to focus on welfare and agriculture, we have done a lot with infrastructure, education and health, the time has come for us to feed our people and my target for next year is to grow enough food to feed Ekiti people.”

At Oke Ako Ekiti, Governor Oyebanji, while applauding the youths for their dexterity and commitment to success of the project, assured the people that his government had already concluded plans to commence rehabilitation of the road from Ayedun to Oke Ako with a pledge to also provide electricity to the town within a short time.

The Governor assured residents that those whose farms were acquired and enumeration completed would receive their compensation within two weeks .

“Despite the shortage of rain this year, you are not discouraged, we are looking at a process whereby we provide irrigation and as well provide each of you with a pair of rain coats and boots.

“We will also provide a vehicle to each of the groups to allow for easy mobility and make the farms accessible at all times.

“Please note that the support I am giving you was provided by President Bola Tinubu, the state government doesn’t have that kind of resources.

“I went to him and I told him I want to get involved in agriculture.

“He gave us that support and I promised myself that when we get that resources, we will invest it in agriculture, so, from that resource, we should be able to get a bus for each group,” the governor stated.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE