Southwest governors have unveiled plans for massive food production across the six states to counter 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 prioritizing rice, maize, cassava, and poultry farming.
Additionally, moribund dams in the region will be revitalized for irrigation.
President Bola Tinubu, a week ago, had given governors one week to come up with a realistic template on how they intend to boost food production in their states.
Investigation by The Nation revealed that governors of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti states, operating under the Southwest Governors’ Forum, have directed their agriculture commissioners to quickly implement a plan developed during their May meeting in Ibadan.
Conveyed by the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission, the meeting allowed the states to exchange ideas on increasing regional food production.
Agreed strategies included clearing large farmlands for planting, creating farm units, strengthening the security outfit Amotekun to protect farmers, and large-scale production of short-term crops like maize, sweet potatoes, and vegetables.
They also decided 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.
It was learned that the governors will finalize strategies on clearing cluster farmlands this week.
Each state agreed to support farmers in clearing at least 1,000 hectares of farmland in cluster positions, a source said.
Cluster farming, which offers economies of scale, will also facilitate Amotekun’s ability to secure farms, simplify produce off-taking, and eliminate middlemen, thereby reducing food prices.
Sources indicated that states may focus initially on rice, maize, cassava, and poultry farming to ease food inflation pressures.
At the Ibadan meeting, the states agreed to return to cluster farming as a solution to insecurity and a key to achieving economies of scale.
They will engage smallholder farmers and support them with land clearing, seeds, and security, and also develop irrigation to shift from rainfall-dependent to all-year farming.
Ekiti State has already led by clearing many acres of land, while Oyo State offers farmers an incentive: clearing one acre of land free for every acre cleared by a farmer.
The states will also strengthen and enforce anti-grazing laws to boost farmers’ confidence.
This week, the governors are expected to submit their plan to the president, who has expressed the Federal Government’s willingness to support state-led food production efforts.
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Credit – The Nation