The Kwara State Government has disclosed plans to partner with the Lagos State Government on the production of rice, adding that the partnership would attract N10 billion investments over four years.
This was disclosed by the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, at the inauguration of the farmers’ subsidy scheme in the state in Ilorin on Wednesday.
AbdulRazaq noted that the scheme was targeted at using agriculture as a tool to drive economic growth following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on agricultural output in the country.
He added that the scheme had been structured in a manner that ensured that only the “intended farmers” received the input of the state government.
He said, “This subsidy scheme gives our farmers easy access to certified seeds, assorted fertilisers and herbicides for the 2021 planting season at 50 per cent market price.
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“This initiative is part of the administration’s sustained efforts to use agriculture to drive economic growth and food security in the post Covid-19 pandemic era.
“I assure you that mechanisms have been put in place, especially reliable data, to ensure that these inputs get only to the intended farmers.
“This programme is basically to improve productivity. We have to bring this subsidy because our farmers went through a lot of hardship last year with COVID-19.
“So, we needed to step in to enable them to get fertilisers, improved seedlings and herbicides to boost production.”
Food Security For Kwara and Nigeria
The governor said that the aim of the scheme was not to ensure food security in the state alone but across the country, adding that farmers in the state farmed without any problem, but the support of the government was necessary.
He said, “It is not just about food security in Kwara State but in Nigeria as a whole. Farmers are farming largely without any problem in Kwara.
“We only need to support them. The aim is to achieve food security in Nigeria, not just Kwara. From animal husbandry to all other facets of agriculture.
“Kwara is also working out a partnership with the Lagos State government on rice production which may see roughly N10 billion investments over the next four years.
“We have the land. We are negotiating with some states, especially Lagos state. Lagos has arguably the biggest rice mill in Nigeria today, but they don’t have land.
“We want to take advantage of that and we are talking in that direction to have an MOU. And then, the federal government is working with us. We are working on the special agro-processing zone to be located in Lata which will see the investment of about N10 billion going to agriculture in Edu and Patigi local governments alone in the next two to four years; so we need to scale up what we are doing in those areas.”
