The Federal Government and International Fund for Agricultural Development assisted Value Chain Development Programme (IFAD-VCDP), on Friday said it had expanded its operation to three more local governments in Ogun.
The three local government areas are: Odeda, Yewa South and Odogbolu and bring to eight the number of local government areas benefiting from the programme.
The five local governments of Ijebu North East, Ijebu East, Yewa North, Obafemi/Owode and Ifo had been benefiting from the scheme since it took off in August 2014.
Mr Samuel Adeogun, the State Programme Coordinator, (SPC) represented by Mr David Onigbinde of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation department, Ogun State Management Unit of the project, said the addition of three local governments was to eradicate poverty and encourage food production.
Adeogun, at the one-day sensitisation organised for farmers in Odogbolu Local Government, said the additional local governments would benefit from the over $100 million project under its additional finance programme expected to last for about two years.
“The programme is targeted at fighting poverty, strengthening surplus food provision and providing income for small holder rural farmers who engaged in rice and cassava value chain.
“Beneficiaries of this programme must form a registered group of minimum of 10 and maximum of 25 persons who are engaged in rice and cassava value chain of not more than 25 hectres
“The beneficiaries of the programme will pay 50 per cent for various farm inputs such as improved varieties of rice and cassava stem cuttings, fertilisers, herbicides among others while the Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP) will pay the rest,’’ he said..
He also said that for beneficiaries who would need farm equipment and machines such as Tillers, Threshers, Sprayers, milling machine, Cassava grater, among others, the VCDP would pay 70 per cent while the farmers would pay 30 per cent.
“This programme is already yielding good result for us in Ogun state, we have built a garri processing factory for farmers at Baara, in Obafemi Owode Local Government.
“We have also assisted farmers that are into Fufu processing at Ifo, we have built bridge for some farmers at Yewa North and this has helped a lot to ease their farming enterprise.
“This project is a well thought out tripartite collaborative efforts of the state government, the Federal Government and IFAD that must be embraced to further fight poverty and increase our food production,’’ he said.
Mr Olawale Shittu, the Chairman of Odogbolu Local Government, represented by Mr Abdulateef Adenuga, the Vice Chairman of the Council, lauded government for investing so much in policies and programmes aimed at boosting agricultural production.
Shittu said the deliberate policies of Federal Government such as VCDP has led to increased rice production and decrease in billions of naira spent on its importation.
He commended the state government for extending the opportunity to the local government, and urged famers to embrace the programme, promising to ensure success of the project in the local government. (NAN)
