Gombe State Governor, Inuwa Yahaya, on Friday, said his state is working with the federal government to shield its food production efforts by ensuring there is security for farmers to return to their farms.
Governor Yahaya, who disclosed this to journalists at the State House, Abuja, after a meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima in his office, also explained that though the food shortage crisis is global, Nigeria’s experience had been made more serious because of security crisis, especially in the Northwest and Northeast.
He, however, disclosed that his administration, though working with the federal government on surmounting the crisis, has also mapped out short, medium and long-term responses to the food shortage crisis.
“Food crisis is not only prevalent in Nigeria it is obtained all over the world because of the challenges confronting the world, but our own has its own peculiarities because of the insecurity that has bedeviled the North; especially Northwest and Northeast.
“That notwithstanding, we are making serious efforts to ensure that we restore normalcy by providing security to enable the people go back to their farms. So we have our own strategies for both the short medium and long term. Each State has its own but we have keyed into that of the federal government in order to ensure that very soon we overcome the challenges,” he said.
Meanwhile, Governor Yahaya has assured that his administration will continue to provide the enabling environment for businesses to thrive in the State.
This is sequel to the emergence of the state as the first among the 36 States of Nigeria in the socio-economic index compiled by an independent organization that provides insights into the socio-economic performance and risk profiles of Nigerian states.
“There is no magic about how we emerged as the best among its peers on the socio-economic index, there is no miracle it is just commitment, hard work and dedication.
“Over the time, since I became Governor, I made sure that I maintain focus and a clear vision. We made sure we consistently monitored the progress of the State economically, vis-à-vis the needs of the people and the mood of the country.
“So all those things joined together gave us victory. Socio-economic development means every aspect of human development and I am very happy that effort we are making in Gombe is recognized and we remain focused and will consistently continue to deliver on the needs of our people”, he said.
It would be recalled that Gombe State recently emerged the best in Nigeria with a PSPI Score of 0.80, ranking 1st with an AAA rating, indicating an excellent performance.
On the index, Gombe is followed by Jigawa, Ekiti and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) which occupying 2nd 3rd and 4th positions in that order.
This is contained in the 2023 National Assessment Report by State Performance Index (SPPI), an independent organization which provides insights into the socio-economic performance and risk profiles of Nigerian states.
Gombe was rated high in most of the socio-economic parameters that were considered, which include: economic potentials, socioeconomic performance and risk management.
At regional level, the report indicated that Gombe State stands out as the top-performing state in the North-East affected by Boko Haram Insurgency.
“Despite being in the least position in terms of socio-economic potential, the Gombe State government; efficiently utilized its limited resources to drive significant socio-economic performance,” the report noted.
Furthermore, the report attributed the high rating of Gombe state to “the continuity in government, ongoing investments in infrastructure, alignment with federal initiatives, economic diversification, and strategic agricultural programmes,” underscoring the role of the state government in being catalyst for turning around the fortunes of the state and putting it on the sustainable path of growth and development.
