No fewer than 210 vulnerable women farmers, widows, petty traders and women with disabilities have been empowered with cash and agricultural items across the 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi State.

The State Governor, Alh. Yahaya Bello, who flagged off the distribution on Thursday in Lokoja, said the gesture was the efforts of Federal Government in collaboration with State Government to eliminate poverty and hunger among the women folks and uplift their livelihood.

The governor, who was represented by his Deputy, Chief Edward Onoja, added that the initiative would improve the lives of the beneficiaries to enable them contribute their quotas to the economy of the state and the country at large.

He advised the women leader to distribute the items judiciously inline with his policy of Fairness, equity and justice.

He urged women to intensifies their prayers for Governor Yahaya Bello to enable God release the presidential mandate on him, stressing that what women in Kogi are benefiting could reach out to other women in the country.

He noted that this was the first time Kogi state has a leader who had shown national recognition and reckoned globally.

”I did not choose to go for presidency because of myself but for the benefit of people of Kogi and Nigerians, especially the less privilege, vulnerable women and children in the society,” he said.

He commended the management of WEMA Bank for their promised to support Kogi Women in improving their lives, assuring the Bank that it will not be disappointed by women for such gesture.

He congratulated beneficiaries of the empowerment and advised them to use the the cash and agricultural items judiciously to improve their lives.

Earlier, the Commissioner of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Fatima Buba, said a total of 210 women would benefit across the 21 local government areas of the state.

She said the essence of the empowerment was to eradicate poverty and hunger among women, widows, and people with disabilities.

This, she said would improve their lives to enable them contribute their quotas to the economy of the state and the country at large. She

She said Kogi Women were industrious, enterprising and versatile, especially in agriculture, and advised them to use the items for their intended purposes.

The Commissioner of Agriculture, Mr David Apeh, commended the Federal and State Government for the gesture, as well as Wema Bank for ensure readiness to support women farmers in the state.

Apeh appealed to the bank to simplify the loan conditions to enable the women access it.

Also speaking, Manager of Wema Bank, Mrs Chinasa Isaac, assured the readiness of the bank to support government in its empowerment programmes.

She said the bank has products targeting women folks, saying it was ready to give them loan at the range of N100,000 to N1 million to boost their businesses.

Some beneficiaries, Funke Abolaji, Sepuwa Danladi, Ramatu Yusuf and Omoshade Yemi from Yagba West, Yagba East, Idah, Ofu and Ibaji Local Governments respectively, commended the Federal and state government for the empowerment.

They expressed happiness for being beneficiaries of the programme and promised to use the cash as well as agricultural items according to expectations.

The Agricultural items distributed include: seedlings such as Beans, rice, maize, grandnut and farm implements such as wheel barrow, shovel, spraying container, fertilizer, chemicals, among others.

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The federal government has begun the distribution of free farm inputs to more than 560 rural farmers in Kogi State

The distribution is on the platform of the Value Chain Development (IVCDP) Programme supported by International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)

Speaking at the inauguration on Friday in Lokoja, the National Programme Coordinator, FGN/IFAD-VCDP, Dr Fatima Aliyu, said that the gesture was to boost food security and cushion the damaging effects of COVID-19 pandemic on rural farmers.

She noted that that the VCDP was a joint programme of the Federal Government and IFAD and is implemented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

According to her, the project aims at improving the incomes and food security of poor rural households engaged in the production, processing and marketing of rice and cassava on a sustainable basis.

”In early 2020, there was an outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic which affected the world and disrupted farming activities and food systems.

”To cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on farmers, IFAD gave a grant tagged Rural Poor Stimulus Facility (RPSF) to VCDP through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

”The grant is meant for vulnerable farmers in VCDP states of Enugu State, Kogi, Nasarawa State, Anambra, Benue, Niger, Taraba and Ebonyi to sustain production and help them recover more quickly from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

”Through the RPSF 2,793 vulnerable farmers will receive agro inputs to support their farming activities.

”A total of 560 farmers will receive these inputs free consisting of 40kg certified rice seeds, 2 litres of herbicides, two bags of NPK fertiliser and one bag of Urea fertilizers in Kogi state,” she said

Aliyu was overwhelmed by the efforts and commitment of the state programme Coordinator, Dr Stella Adejoh, saying that is why Kogi State is always ahead of others in the COVID 19 palliative.

She noted that VCDP would also provide extension services to targeted farmers who would receive trainings on good practices in the application of fertiliser and agro-che.

”We recognizse and appreciate the support of IFAD in our quest to improve the livelihoods of our small holder farmers and specifically to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 pandemic on the agricultural sector particularly for VCDP farmers.

”To our respected farmers, we implore you to make judicious use of the inputs. The inputs are not meant to be sold out but for you to use them on your farms.

”We are going to support you with extension services and monitor your progress to ensure you have better yields to enhance your food security and incomes and ultimately your standard of living,” Aliyu said.

He thanked Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi for his commitment and support to the VCDP, and assured him of their unwavering collaboration with the state to improve the livelihoods and income of the farmers.

In his remarks, the Kogi Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr David Apeh, who inaugurated the inputs’ distribution, said that government would not relent in providing secured environment for farming activities to thrive in the state.

Earlier, the State Programme Coordinator, Dr Stella Adejoh, expressed her joy and fulfillment over the exercise, urging the farmers not to play with their tomorrow by selling the input.

She said that the 560 rural farmers cut across the four rice producing local government areas of Lokoja, Ibaji, Ajaokuta and Kabba/Bunu, adding that the initiative was meant to reduce the pains brought on the people by the outbreak of the pandemic.

She noted that IFAD-VCDP operations and activities which started two years ago had made positive impacts on the lives of the rural farmers.

She said that since inception, many communities across the state were provided with rice processing centres with processors, drying slabs and solar powered boreholes, among others.

She thanked the state Government. Yahaya Bello for providing the enabling environment for the IFAD/VCDP programmes to thrive in the state.

She assured that IFAD would collaborate with relevant stakeholders for effective monitoring and supervision of the beneficiaries down to their farms for judicious use of the inputs,”Adejoh said.

One of the beneficiaries, Mr Salihu Abdullahi, Chairman Magajiya farm cluster, Lokoja, commended the IFAD-VCDP for the initiative to alleviate the sufferings of rural farmers.

End

By Abdul Mommoh

The Kwara State Coordinator of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), Mall. Ahmed Saba has said rice production in Kwara state has evolved as more youths have embraced farming in the state.

He stated this recently while answering questions from journalist in his Ilorin office.

According to him, “Kwara has joined the league of comity of states in rice production and value chains.

” Kwara is one of the states in Nigeria that produce large quantity of rice paddy in the country. But Kwara is under reported.
“The potentials we have in Rice production in Kwara is far better than what they have in other parts of the country like Kebbi, Kaduna among others.

“Kwara has boundary with River Niger. With that, the land that is available for Rice farming is enough to feed this country. Kwara can feed Nigeria,” he stressed.

Saba added that five Local Governments out of the 16 in the state are actively producing rice, it remains for the state government to tap into the potentials.

“Presently out of the 16 Local Governments in Kwara, about five are actively producing rice and its value chain. These LGs are Edu, Patigi, Moro, Ifelodun and Asa.

But the Kwara State government is yet to discover the potentials of Rice production in this part of the state.

“If government take very seriously the people of Patigi, Kaiama and Edu who were affected by flood recently by urging the Federal Government to dredge River Niger, it will boost rice production.

“So, if Kwara State government is ready to support us, let them dredge the River Niger and we shall tell the whole world what we can do in Kwara, ” he added.

The rice Farmer lamented that his association hasn’t gotten the required support from the Kwara state government except in terms of some policies implementation.

“The support we got from the government is in terms of security, but we are yet to receive any form of support directly from the present administration.

“We have written letters to the government , but there are policies the government is coming out with like tractor support services, inputs support services and others.

“Recently, we had the opportunity to meet with the Governor, AbdulRazaq AbdulRahman with the team of the Central Bank of Nigeria who came to look at what we are doing at the local level.

“The governor said he is happy with us and that his government would guarantee us of the ISPO required to access loans. We asked him to open more land because people are ready to farm.

He however said the future of rice production in Kwara is bright as over 30,000 youths have embraced farming in Kwara.

Since her appointment, settlements of claims in NAIC has been prompt. To this end, the majority of farmers and those who had claimed settlement with NAIC, had expressed confidence and satisfaction in the way matters are now been handled, there is however a huge increase in the confidence level of farmers patronising NAIC because of them believing that it can now effectively handle their risks.
 
Her staff welfarism and training programme is top-notch. Mrs Joseph believes in training and re-training of staff for the optimum result-oriented environment. On her resumption and in line with her vision of making the corporation the leading Agricultural Insurance Organisation, Mrs Joseph immediately built and commissioned a new ultra-modern conference hall which was to assist in the delivery of an efficient, safe, productive and energy optimising environment; which will also reduce operating cost, increase staff orientations, re-orientation, training and as well generate additional income to NAIC through other outside users. 
 
She has also created a farmer’s friendly environment by ensuring that her staffs go round the nation training and sensitising farmers on how best to go about their farming businesses in other for them to gain a high yield and to also avoid common and unnecessary natural hazards and risk. She has made sure that her staffs allay people’s fear of the wrong notion that insurance companies are reluctant or reneges when it comes to settlements or payment of claims. 
 
Because NAIC is government-owned and they are the sole underwriter of agricultural risk, Mrs Joseph is firm on operating the NAIS scheme of subsidising premium dues to the tune of 50%; this however means that the farmers pay 50% while the Federal Government and the State Government where the project is located pays 37% and 12.5% respectively.
 
Her term in office has seen to extending the scope of NAIC not only to agricultural insurance businesses but to underwrite other policies in businesses such as fire, burglary, workmen compensation, motor, marine, hull and cargo, goods in transit and performance bond because the act enabling the corporation empowers it to do so since they are also necessary for the Agric-Businesses across the value chain.
 
It is therefore not a surprise that in line with the Buhari’s next level agenda, the President through the Minister of Agriculture, deemed it fit to re-appoint Mrs Folashade Joseph, a trailblazer for a second term in office which started on the 12th of April 2021.
 

Over a hundred people have benefited from a free medical test during the last yuletide season at The Redeemed Christian Church of God, The great turn around parish Igbogbo, ikorodu, Lagos.

The free healthcare service was co-sponsored by Impact Energy & Logistics Limited.

Impact Energy & logistics Limited was Established in 2012 to take advantage in Key sectors of the Nigerian Economy namely energy, petroleum and logistics.The company recently ventured into Agriculture,security services and general commerce.
The Managing Director of the company, Mr. Dare Osamo said, the gesture was part of the company’s CSR in giving back to the society, “because the company believes it is one of the most effective ways it can reach back to the community drawing from it’s limited resources.

“The company organized the medical test on the firm belief that health is wealth, also considering that many people do not take their health seriously.”

Mr Dare Osamo urged the people to take seriously, instructions given them by medical experts at the free healthcare programme while also projecting that the company will embark on more Charity work in the year 2021.

The Pastorate of the church appreciated Impact Energy & logistics limited for the kind gesture and advised other corporate organization to emulate it.