Governor Seyi Makinde on Tuesday said his administration would continue to prioritise the development of agriculture to improve food production in Oyo state, Nigeria.
Makinde gave the assurance at the 2021 Oyo State Agribusiness Summit held at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan.
Theme of the summit was: “Grow Oyo, Invest in Agribusiness.”
He said agriculture, agribusiness and farming were given top positions in the affairs of the state, because of the sector’s importance in national and state developments.
The governor urged investors in the agricultural sector to take advantage of the state’s numerous competitive potential to explore the state eco-friendly agriculture business environment.
He also assured interested investors of favorable tax regime, promising that the administration would continue to support the stakeholders.
The governor said his government was making efforts to use agriculture to lift people of the state from poverty to prosperity.
Also, Dr Debo Akande, the Director-General, Oyo State Agribusiness Development Agency (OYSADA), said the state had embarked on vigorous infrastructure development to boost its investment profile.
Akande said the development would enhance competitiveness of agribusiness sector and offer dedicated crop production, livestock ranching and processing facilities to maximise the income generation activities for investors.
According to him, the projects are designed to align with the 156 kilometres rail project linking Ibadan to Lagos.
“Once the Kano leg of the rail line is operational, Oyo State will sit right in the sweet spot connecting the biggest markets in the Northern and Southern Nigeria.
“The details of the projects will be part of our discussion during this summit.
“There is no other state with the variety of options, business enabling infrastructure, policies, incentives, among others, comparable to Oyo State,” he said.
Also, Dr Adewunmi Adesina, the President, African Development Bank (AfDB), said Oyo State was the first to own and roll out ICT-based agro input programmes to help farmers with modern technology to improve production.
Adesina, represented by Dr Martins Fregene, the AfDB Director of Agriculture Department, urged the state to build more local capacity, and be competitive in its agriculture production and put farmers at the centre of its agriculture.
He enjoined the state government to attract more investors from the developed countries into its agribusiness hub and adapt climate change technologies approved by researchers.
Also, the IITA Director-General, Dr Nteranya Sanginga, underscored the need for Nigeria to develop the agriculture sector to improve food production and reduce importation of food items.
Sanginga said, “Importing foods means we are creating jobs for the countries where we are importing from.”
He said IITA, through its agribusiness programmes, had changed the mindset of youths toward agriculture.
The IITA director-general commended the state government for its full support to IITA, especially in the development of agriculture in the state. (NAN)
