Food security: Abia shifts focus to commercial agriculture, empowers 18,000 farmers

By Peter Okore, Umuahia

Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, has said his administration is pursuing an aggressive agricultural policy focused on commercial farming as a means of boosting food security, creating jobs and driving economic growth.

Otti stated this while flagging off the Abia State Farmers Support Initiative at the Umuahia Township Stadium, an intervention programme designed to empower over 18,000 farmers across the state’s 17 local government areas.

A total of 3,312 farmers received agricultural inputs at the event, while the remaining 15,322 beneficiaries are expected to collect theirs through their respective local government areas.

Alex Otti arriving the venue

The governor also announced that the state government had made transportation arrangements to ensure beneficiaries move the inputs to their farms at no additional cost.

Describing farmers as critical partners in the state’s development agenda, Otti assured them of sustained support from his administration.

He explained that the distribution of farm inputs followed a comprehensive registration and verification exercise aimed at ensuring transparency, accountability and proper targeting of beneficiaries.

“We started with data gathering because we wanted to map every farmer to a farm. We now have a comprehensive database of our farmers. If we cannot identify you, we won’t be able to support you,” Otti said.

The governor encouraged genuine farmers who had yet to register to take advantage of the ongoing registration exercise in order to benefit from future interventions.

He stressed the need to move beyond subsistence farming, noting that the state was prioritising large-scale agricultural production.

“Subsistence farming may not take us too far because we are aggressively promoting commercial agriculture. Agriculture is a veritable business,” he said.

As part of efforts to attract investment into the sector, Otti disclosed that the favourable business environment created by his administration had continued to draw investors to the state.

He revealed that a multinational palm oil company had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Abia State Government to invest up to $200 million in the state’s agricultural sector.

According to him, such investments would strengthen food security, create employment opportunities, reduce poverty and position Abia as a leading agricultural hub.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr Cliff Agbaeze, said 18,634 verified farmers would benefit from the programme this farming season.

He said the beneficiaries would receive improved varieties of cassava, rice, maize, plantain, sweet potato, pepper and tomato seedlings, as well as organic fertilisers.

Agbaeze explained that eligibility for the programme was tied to registration on the state’s farmers’ database and verification of ownership or access to farmland.

He added that the state government had fully paid for all the agricultural inputs and would also cover transportation costs.

In his keynote address, the Executive Director of the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), Umudike, Prof. Chiedozie Egesi, described the initiative as evidence that agriculture had regained a central place in the state’s development strategy.

He noted that agriculture remains critical to Nigeria’s future and said Abia has the potential to emerge as a major agricultural powerhouse in the South-East and across the country.

Egesi pledged the institute’s readiness to partner with the state government to improve agricultural productivity and commended Otti for establishing a comprehensive farmers’ database.

“Within a relatively short period, Abia State has undergone a remarkable transformation across infrastructure, governance, security, ease of doing business and public service delivery. Confidence has returned to the people.

“When leadership is purposeful, development follows. When government creates an enabling environment, businesses grow. And when farmers are empowered, the entire economy prospers.

“History will remember that your administration understands that the wealth of Abia State does not lie in our cities and industries alone, but also in our fertile lands,” he said.

Also speaking, the Vice-Chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Prof. Ursula Ngozi Akanwa, commended the governor for his commitment to agricultural development and urged beneficiaries to utilise the inputs effectively.

She said the initiative demonstrated the government’s commitment to agricultural transformation, rural prosperity and economic development.

“By providing farmers with critical agricultural inputs, the state government is making a strategic investment in increasing productivity, improving livelihoods and promoting sustainable agricultural growth.

“Agriculture remains the bedrock of our economy and the most reliable pathway to achieving food security and reducing poverty,” Akanwa said.