By Stephen Adeleye
The Kogi Government, in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development Value Chain Development Programme (IFAD-VCDP), has distributed farm inputs and cargo tricycles to 572 rice and cassava farmers to boost food production and improve rural livelihoods.
The Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Mr Timothy Ojomah, who flagged off the distribution on Tuesday in Lokoja, described the intervention as a major step towards strengthening food security, increasing agricultural productivity and promoting inclusive economic growth.
Ojomah said the initiative reflected the Ododo administration’s commitment to empowering farmers, improving rural livelihoods and driving sustainable agricultural development across the state.
He commended Gov. Ahmed Ododo for prioritising agriculture through the prompt payment of counterpart funds, describing the support as critical to the successful implementation of agricultural development programmes.
The commissioner also lauded IFAD-VCDP for improving farmers’ access to quality inputs, promoting climate-smart agriculture, strengthening farmer organisations and enhancing agricultural value chains.
According to him, beneficiaries received fertilisers, improved rice seeds and cargo tricycles to improve farm operations, reduce post-harvest losses and ease transportation of produce to markets.
Ojomah stated that the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu was receiving significant impetus through Gov. Ododo, who is reaching out to farmers at the grassroots to improve their well-being and livelihoods.
He urged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the inputs to increase yields, improve incomes and contribute to food security.
The National Coordinator of IFAD-VCDP, Dr Fatima Aliyu, who was represented by her Personal Assistant, Mallam Hamza Shehu, said the distribution of farming inputs to beneficiary farmers in Kogi, was another step toward boosting food production and ensuring food security across the country.
Aliyu urged the farmers to make judicious use of the inputs and cargo tricycles to achieve the goals and objectives of IFAD-VCDP, particularly in enhancing farmers’ welfare and economic empowerment.
Earlier, the State Programme Coordinator (SPC) of IFAD-VCDP, Dr Stella Adejoh, said the programme was designed to transform rural economies by providing smallholder farmers with quality inputs, improved technologies, mechanisation support and better market access.
The SPC noted that a total of 7,575 farmers across the rice and cassava value chains are benefiting from IFAD-VCDP initiative across the five befitting LGAs, including Lokoja, Kabba-Bunu, Ibaji, Ajaokuta and Olamaboro.
Adejoh said the beneficiaries for this wet season inputs support comprised 572 farmers.
She explained that 285 cassava farmers, comprising 85 adult women, 124 adult men, 38 female youths and 38 male youths, benefited, while 287 rice farmers included 72 adult women, 45 adult men, 82 female youths and 88 male youths.
According to her, cassava farmers received 540 litres of herbicides, 1,120 bags of NPK fertiliser and 14,000 bundles of improved cassava stems, while rice farmers got 520 litres of herbicides, 260 bags of certified rice seeds, 520 bags of urea fertiliser and 1,040 bags of NPK fertiliser.
She added that the programme also distributed 42 mini cargo tricycles and six heavy-duty cargo tricycles to facilitate produce aggregation, transportation and improved market access.
Adejoh urged beneficiaries to regard the items as productive assets rather than commodities for sale, stressing that proper utilisation would improve productivity, household incomes and rural prosperity.
Dr Bello Ogirima, Managing Director, Kogi State Agricultural Development Project, (ADP), who hosted the program, lauded Governor Ahmed Ododo for his unwavering commitment to agricultural development, which he said has driven the recorded successes.
According to him, the administration has given agriculture a major boost through sustained investment in extension services and food production.
He further described Kogi ADP as the backbone of agricultural development in the state, and said VCDP has made farming easier for beneficiaries. “VCDP has become a household name in Kogi, with communities across the state benefiting from its interventions,” he said.
A beneficiary, Adebayo Ibijoke, thanked Kogi Government and IFAD-VCDP for the intervention, describing it as timely and impactful.
She said the cargo tricycle would ease the transportation of harvested cassava from farms to markets, reduce transportation costs and improve access to buyers.
Ibijoke also commended Gov. Ahmed Ododo for supporting farmers and prayed for continued success for his administration.
