By Emmanuel Nicholas
Agriculture is the key to poverty eradication and sustainable development. Those who face the daily scourge of hunger, the very poor, also face each day struggling for human dignity in a world, where they are treated as though the world would be better off without them.
Governor Udom Emmanuel highlighted during the FADAMA 3 flag-off that, right to food, is a basic human right and both governments and citizenry have the responsibility of ensuring freedom from hunger. Governor Udom Emmanuel, consistently, at every fora, has always unequivocally reiterated his position to ensure food sufficiency in Akwa Ibom State.
Few days after he was sworn into office, Governor Udom at the Executive Chambers of the Governor’s Office, inaugurated the Technical Committee on Agriculture and Food Sufficiency, which has Prof. Edet Udo as Chairman. The sudden constitution of the technical Committee shows his vigorous vision of ensuring that starvation will not be heard of, within the borders of Akwa Ibom.
During the inauguration, Governor Emmanuel noted that, the problem of food insufficiency in the country can be traced to the inability of Nigeria to develop her value chains over time. He pledged his commitment to encourage farmers in the state to increase their yield by providing strategic funding, improved seedlings and skills development.
Recently, Mr Udom Emmanuel restated his administration’s resolve to implement policies that will increase food productivity and improve the economy. The Governor again, made the remark while flagging off Fadama 3 Additional Financing Cassava Intervention Project at the Akadep Seed Farm, Awa Iman in Onna Local Government Area.
Also during the Cocoa seedling distribution flag-off, Governor Emmanuel, said that his administration will continue to encourage cocoa cultivation in the state by providing incentives to farmers with at least five hectares.
“Akwa Ibom used to be the fourth largest producer of cocoa in Nigeria and we are ready to get back there.
‘’Our target, which is very measurable, is that in the next one and half years, we want to double current production.
“In the next three years, we expect to have up to 70,000 to 80,000 acres of cocoa plantation in Akwa Ibom. I am sure with that, we will rank among the first two in Nigeria”, he stated.
Governor Emmanuel also said that, his administration will revolutionise agriculture so as to engage 10,000 youths in the sector.
He noted that the state was blessed with arable land for all-seasons cultivation, emphasising that, he was committed to exploiting the agricultural potentials of the state. Already over 200 youths have been sent to Israel to study mechanized farming.
“If we don’t plant today, there may not be harvest tomorrow to sustain the people as overdependence on oil does not do the economy any good,” the governor said.
The Government of Akwa Ibom State knows that to achieve food sufficiency, there must be all round season farming. This is why Governor Emmanuel flagged-off the 2015 Second Season Planting. The event recently took place at the Seed Multiplication Farm, Ikot Okudom , Eket Local Government Area of the state.
The occasion which was at the instance of the state Technical Committee on Agriculture and Food Sufficiency in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources brought together major stakeholders in the agriculture sector as well as recognised farmers’ associations and cooperatives.
The Commissioner of Agriculture, Dr Matthew Nathan Ekaette in his opening address remarked: “Gone are the days when people expected output and harvest only in December when we have the endowment to plant twice in a year. There are some crops we can plant two or three times a year and by so doing meet the demand and breach the supply–demand gap,”.
Bridging the demand-supply gap through enhanced agricultural practices is the focal point of the current industrialization drive of the state government. This was again reaffirmed by the governor, who in spite of the rain personally flagged-off 2015 the second season planting in the state.
The governor revealed that the re-direction of focus to farming, reduction of prices of stable food in the state by 50% within two-and-a-half years, and food sufficiency informed the official flag-off of the second season planting in Akwa Ibom State.
In his words: “We want to make food sufficient; … there is nothing that can stop us,” Emmanuel said.
To further ensure food sufficiency Akwa Ibom State Government is constructing 10 cassava processing plant across the State to reduce the price of its products like garri , flour , chips ,bread and fufu by 50 percent .
During the FADAMA 3 flag-off the commissioner of Agriculture , announced to the entire world that three of the plants will be ready before December 2016.
Governor Udom Emmanuel has also inaugurated the 540,000 Egg Capacity Poultry Hatchery that is catering to the needs of poultry farmers in Akwa Ibom State and the entire South-south geo-political zone at Mbiaya in Uruan local government area of the state.
The Hatchery project will be solving the problem of South-South and Southeast farmers, who are going all the way to the western and northern parts of Nigeria to hatch their birds.
The Akwa Ibom State government is also planning to establish a live feed production company which will cater for the hatchery birds.
The bid to ensure availability of stable food to all residents of Akwa Ibom State at avoidable prices is the priority of Governor Udom Emmanuel’s administration. That is reason, he is also using all agencies of government in projecting effectiveness of farming to the people. AKEES is another agent of Government which is also involved in funding farmers, as it has helped young farmers to establish over 11 farms across the State .
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