By Magnus Effiong
Worried by reports from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) that 3.44 million Cross Riverians were facing multidimensional poverty, the State government says it has rolled out life-touching programmes to reverse the trend.
Speaking at a press briefing in Calabar, the State Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, Hon Johnson Ebokpo said “We recognize the fact that Agriculture is a low hanging fruit that can catalyze other sectors of our economy.
“In line with our agricultural policy to mitigate against food insecurity, job loss as well as provide opportunities for economic equity that will help the citizens of Cross River State prosper, we have embarked on significant projects and plans that’ll bring our people into the money supply system.
“We have procured 108nos of 30hp medium tractors to be distributed to the 18 LGA’s. These tractors will be owned by the beneficiary cooperatives of 10 youths in each LGA thereby creating 1080 direct jobs, 2,160 indirect jobs from roles like transportation, maintenance etc. By the next harvest in 2025, our food production would have quadrupled, leading us to a transition to Commercial Agricultural Development.”
He enumerated other measures to include the construction of 10 mini-cassava processing mills; 10 mini-rice mills; and the provisions of solar-powered boreholes across 10 existing small-holder rice milling locations in the State.
Ebokpo said the state government has commenced the first phase of about 12,000,00 land clearing for the commercial production of grains such as maize, cassava, rice, sorghum, cowpea, and wheat, including establishing N30 billion Naira Commercial Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme known as ‘PROJECT GROW’, which, he explained, is meant to serve as collateral to unlock lending facilities from financial institutions.
“We recently distributed 24,000 bags of inputs consisting of NPK fertilizer and Urea to farmers cooperatives and associations across the 18LGA’s of the State. We have also distributed agricultural farm (group) assets, such as motorized hand tillers, cassava processing machines, and rice thresher, as well as individual assets like knapsack sprayers, collapsible fish tanks and water pump accessories to over 15,000 beneficiaries under the NG-CARES FADAMA Programme.
“We have distributed Agricultural farm inputs to over 10,000 small-scale poultry, piggery, aquaculture, rice, cassava, and vegetable farmers across the State under the NG-CARES FADAMA Program,” he stated.
