By Daniel Peters
The National Agro Allied Commodities Cooperatives Services in collaboration with the World Bank is to launch a six year food security programme worth $500 million dollars.
The National President General, Yeye Oodua Agbaye of Ife Kingdom, Queen Hajarat Victoria Adeyeye, disclosed in a statement in Abuja, that part of the plan is to offer loan facilities to small holders farmers across the country.
She stated that the loan facility will enable farmers across the country to contribute to food security and become self-sufficient in food production.
Queen Hajarat Adeyeye thanked President Bola Tinubu, who has been magnanimous in approving the Empowerment Scheme for Farmers in the 36 States of the Federation including Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
She equally applauded the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Alhaji Abubakar Kyari, as well as the Managing Director, Bank of Agriculture for the urgent consideration and approval for the release of funds to enable early disbursement.
“All these interventions are part of efforts being made by the Tinubu led administration to create employment, banish hunger and boost food security”.
Through these commendable initiatives by the President, food scarcity and skyrocketing prices of foodstuffs will soon be a thing of the past.
It is worthy to note that the Bola Tinubu administration through the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security has been instrumental in implementing various initiatives to boost food security and agricultural production in Nigeria.
Some of the key initiatives include; Distribution of 42,000 metric tons of grains to States nationwide, Release of 58,500 metric tons of milled rice to stabilize the market.
Queen Hajarat Adeyeye, therefore, urged the entire registered farmers, producers, processors, packagers, marketers, Agro Input, suppliers, produce buyers and consumers groups in agricultural Agro – Allied value chain system to go and open their accounts of agricultural Agro – Allied commodities Cooperatives accounts with the Bank of Agriculture all over Nigeria, in the nearest B.O.A branches to them.
“Our major focus is youths, women, adults and less privileged people that are able”
Similarly, Agro-Allied Industrial University of Technology, the first of its kind to be established on philosophy of Egalitarianism, and Welfarism, in Queen City, Ilu Ajerowaye, via Afin – Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria with coverage of Geo-Agro space of 500 Hectares already surveyed land, is getting prepared for mechanized farming for food security and Sufficiency.
Other benefits include;
To eradicate graduates youth unemployment
Fast, wealth generation through agricultural business and related matters.
To enhance self-employment.
To promote job creation.
To facilitate good leadership.
To provide food sufficiency through modernized technology and international food exposure to marketability on acceptability through training by experts in relevant fields of Agro – allied commodities cooperative in value chain system endeavors.
To encourage the collaboration of foreign investors with our national needs.
To eradicate poverty in Nigeria and other states in Africa through commodities cooperatives system in Nigeria and other states in Africa through commodities cooperatives system in value chain in a very serious, meaningful and achievement oriented research.