Governor Okezie of Abia State has officially flagged off the 2019 National Farming season with a charge on Abians to re-engender their interest in the agricultural sector for the purpose of job creation, food production and provision of raw materials.
Governor Ikpeazu while flagging off the programme in Umuahia, co-hosted by the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said, “I want to cease this opportunity to invite youths of today to look the way of agriculture as a major vocation leveraging on the impetus that the Bank of Agriculture is giving by providing finances being supported by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“Our prayer and expectation is that Ndi Abia who are largely agrarian in nature will seize the opportunity of the presence of BOA and other major stakeholders in the Agricultural sub sectors to re-engender their interest in Agriculture.
He noted that Agriculture is the key to unemployment and lack of industrialization bedevilling Nigeria adding that it is capable of not only providing massive job opportunities for youths but will also provide raw materials for all kinds of industries.
Governor Ikpeazu regretted that a lot of people look down on Agriculture as a part time activity,pointing out that agriculture has become a pillar that supports economic growth as well as a major earner of foreign exchange.
While stating that that his administration conceptualized it’s pillars of development on Agriculture to give it a rightful position in the state’s economy,Governor Ikpeazu said his administration has in the last four years revolutionalised agriculture with innovative strategies in poultry farming, establishment of rice production mills and proliferation of oil palm production among others.
The governor who described the theme of this years National Farming season, Agricultural Financing: a Panacea for Sustainable Development in Nigeria, as apt said no theme would have been better to encapsulate the essence of agriculture and thanked the Bank of Agriculture, Federal ministry of Agriculture and other major stakeholders for choosing Abia as venue for this year’s flagg off ceremony of the planting season.
Governor of Imo state, Emeka Ihedioha represented by his Deputy, Engr.Gerald Iroha applauded the giant strides of governor Ikpeazu in the area of oil palm production saying that Abians will reap the gains in the years ahead.
Acting Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture,Prof Gabriel Okenwa in his keynote address said the BOA as the Apex Agricultural Finance institution in the country has taken up the challenge of boosting local production of goods so as to revive the economy as well as reduce the country’s dependency on food importation in line with the Federal government’s agriculturaltransformation agenda.
Earlier in her address, the permanent secretary,Abia state ministry of Agriculture,Mrs Nwamaka Ikonne while stressing the need to diversify the nations economy through agriculture, disclosed that Abia state is the first to key into the federal government accelerated Agric Development Scheme.
The 2019 National Farming Season which was chaired by Dr John Kennedy Opara featured goodwill messages from stakeholders in the agricultural sector,Lecture by the Dean faculty of Agriculture, Abia State University Uturu ,Prof Emerole and disbursement of Agricultural loans to deserving farmers by the Bank of Agriculture.
