By Ibukun Emiola
Groundnut farmers in Oyo State have lauded the Federal Government for training them on best practices, aimed at increasing production and reduced incidents of pests and diseases.
They spoke in Ibadan on Wednesday at a workshop on Technology Transfer and Safe Use of Aflasafe to produce Aflatoxin free groundnut for farmers in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event witnessed the distribution of farming input to groundnut farmers by Mrs Omolara Oguntuyi-Abimbola, South-West Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD); and Hajia Zainab Fika, the Desk Officer of Groundnut, FMARD, Abuja,
In his remarks, Tunji Alabi, the South-West Coordinator and Oyo State Chairman, Groundnut Farmers Association of Nigeria, said that the training was timely, as farmers were preparing for the 2023 planting season.
Alabi said: “Apart from this training and presentation of the chemicals Aflasafe, we still need planting tools. One of the tedious areas of Groundnut production is planting.
“Another thing we need is a shelling machine. We also want modern seedlings because we don’t have access to quality seeds.
“We want to go into the value chain of groundnuts production and with the help of the government, a Groundnut Mill can be established in Oyo State,” Alabi said.
Another farmer, Mutiu Adepoju, from Saki West Local Government area, said that the training would help the farmers to have more knowledge on cultivation of the crop.
Adepoju said: “The training would help boost productivity and profitability as it has enlightened us more on groundnut farming.
“We want government to be off-takers of groundnut produce and ensure that farmers are adequately rewarded for their labour, instead of having middlemen to reap us off,” Adepoju said.
Also, Mrs Felicia Oyelami, another groundnut farmer from Ogbomoso North, said there were lots of groundnut farmers in the region who also diversified into other crops.
“We are happy about this workshop and we understood all we were taught.
“Most people shy away from planting groundnut because people lacked the knowledge on its cultivation, but this training is changing that,” Oyelami said.
Another farmer, Mr Kehinde Okediran, from Surulere Local Government area, Ogbomoso, said paucity of funds usually hindered the cultivation of groundnuts because the seedlings were not accessible.
Okediran identified lack of market for the commodity and knowledge on best practices.
He said that the training was apt because it addressed some of the challenges facing the farmers in its cultivation.
Earlier, Oguntuyi-Abimbola said that Federal Government had put in a lot of effort into providing food and nutrition security through various projects being implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.
She urged the farmers in the state to network and form a solid forum that would enhance production of the commodity and attract funding. (NAN)
