Southwest Governor’s firm up food production programme

Southwest governors have unfolded plans for massive food production in the six states to halt the high price of staple foods, it was learnt yesterday.

Reminiscent of the pre-independence period and the First Republic when agriculture was the mainstay of the regional economy, the states are to accord priority to rice, maize, cassava and poultry farming.

Also, moribund dams in the region are to be revitalised for irrigation.

Last week, President Bola Tinubu gave governors one week to come up with a realistic template for how they intend to boost food production in their states.

Governors of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states operating under the auspices of the Southwest Governors’ Forum have directed their agriculture commissioners to quickly build on the plan developed during their meeting in Ibadan in May.

The meeting, which was conveyed by the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission, provided the opportunity for the states to exchange ideas on how best to increase food production in the region.

The meeting had agreed on some strategies, including clearing of large farmlands in preparation for planting, creation of farm units, strengthening of the security outfit, Amotekun, to provide security for farmers and their farms, and large-scale production of short-term crops, including maize, sweet potatoes, and vegetables.

They also agreed to revitalize moribund dams for irrigation, improve mechanization across the value chain, adopt a cluster farming model, expand input distribution, and establish an electronic agriculture database.

The governors will this week finalize the strategies for clearing cluster farmlands.

Each state agreed to support farmers to clear farmlands in cluster positions to the tune of 1,000 hectares each at the minimum, a source said.

The idea of cluster farming, which has the advantage of economy of scale, will also make it easier for Amotekun to secure the farms, ease off -the taking of produce from farmers and eliminate the middlemen, thereby ultimately reducing food prices.

According to the sources the states may concentrate on rice, maize, cassava and poultry farming for a start to ease the pressure of food inflation.

The states agreed at the Ibadan meeting on the need to return to cluster farming as a solution to insecurity and key to economy of scale.

The states will engage smallholder farmers and support them with clearing, seeds and security.

The states also agreed to develop irrigation to move the region from rainfall farming to all-year farming.

It was learnt that Ekiti State has already taken the lead by clearing many acres of land.

Oyo State is said to be offering farmers an incentive of clearing one acre of land free for one acre cleared by a farmer.

The states are also to strengthen and enforce anti-grazing laws to increase the confidence of farmers.

This week, the governors are expected to submit their plan to the president who has indicated the willingness of the Federal Government to support the states in food production.