The Ogun government said it has strengthened farmers’ capacity through mechanisation, financial support, improved market access, and climate-smart agricultural practices to boost food security.
Dr Angel Adelaja-Kuye, the Special Adviser to Gov. Dapo Abiodun on Agriculture and Food Security, told reporters on Friday in Abeokuta.
Adelaja-Kuye said the initiatives were aimed at building a structured and sustainable food system capable of addressing emerging agricultural challenges.
She said the state had, over the past eight years, invested in various agricultural programmes and infrastructure to improve farmers’ productivity and livelihoods.
She listed the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme, Ogun State Economic Transformation Project (OGSTEP) and Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) as some of the initiatives introduced to strengthen the agricultural sector.
According to her, government has also invested in rural road development, farm processing facilities, mechanisation, and an agro-cargo airport to improve access to local and international markets.
She said that the provision of tractors and other mechanised equipment has improved farming activities, while investments in processing infrastructure were helping farmers add value to their produce.
The special adviser said the state government is also strengthening agricultural extension services to ensure farmers receive timely weather information and adopt climate-smart farming techniques.
“Farmers cannot wait on hopes and prayers; they must focus on informed decision-making through the use of weather information and forecasts.
“We ensure that our extension officers receive weather forecasts and use technology to disseminate the information to farmers so that they can prepare ahead of the planting season and protect their crops,” she said.
Adelaja-Kuye said the state is partnering with relevant federal agencies to ensure farmers have access to reliable weather information for effective planning.
She added that the government is also promoting agricultural insurance to protect farmers against losses arising from unforeseen circumstances.
According to her, the insurance initiative will ensure that farmers are compensated when adverse events affect their agricultural investments.
She said the government is committed to training farmers on proper agricultural practices, noting that poor farming methods and avoidable production costs can eventually increase food prices.
“We want to reduce food prices, and we thank God that food prices in Ogun have come down over the past eight years.
“People have been able to buy more food, while we’re seeing year-round availability of products such as tomatoes because farmers are being taught to adopt proactive agricultural practices,” she said.
She said the government’s interventions were designed to make agriculture more attractive, improve food production and ensure sustainable food availability across the state.
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