Graduates empowered for food production, security

Our Reporter

THE Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Agriculture, Ms Abisola Olusanya, has said 200 people, including women, are undergoing training in agriculture to improve food production and security.

She said the trainees, who have completed their National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), are being trained in poultry, fishery, rice and vegetable production on the ministry’s farm in Epe, Lagos.

Olusanya spoke at the second edition of the Farmers Improvement Workshop (FIW), organised by the School of Agriculture, Lagos State Polytechnic (LASPOTECH),  Ikorodu campus.

She was represented by the Director, Planning & Research, Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Bamisaye Oni.

Olusanya said: “We want to teach the students how to do it. We want them to learn how to do it. As they do classroom training, they equally do practical training because we have an experimental farm for that purpose.

“We intend to empower them. We believe that all of them should be tested to show they have interest in agriculture. Immediately they show interest and we are aware, we have a way of verifying and they will be empowered to go into the enterprise they have chosen.

“In order to improve the welfare of farmers in Lagos State and increase food productivity as well as food security, the current government has supported the farmers with quality programmes and welfare packages, which include: extension services, agricultural value chain empowerment and Eko farmers’ market, an initiative that ensures that farmers bring their produce to the market directly.

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“There will be access to agricultural land through the Agricultural Land Holding Authority, an agency in charge of land in the Ministry of Agriculture; access to health facilities by establishing Health Centres and Primary Health Care on the farm settlements and rural areas for the farmers and the community, agricultural bank loan, which enables the ministry to advise the farmers to form a cooperative group to access loans through the Micro finance Bank, Bank of Agriculture and other banks and programmes and projects such as Anchor Borrowers Scheme for the farmers to access capital and land for farm activities to improve productivity.”

LASPOTECH Rector Samuel Sogunro said the workshop is a continuation of the institution’s community social responsibility (CSR) in agriculture development of the state and Nigeria.

“Let me take this opportunity to inform this august body that our polytechnic is not paying lip-service to agriculture. The Academic Board has approved that all students must undertake and pass a general agricultural studies course before graduation, effective from 2019/2020 session,” he said.