AFDB President, Akinwunmi Adesina & Dapo Abiodun, Gov., Ogun State. |
The
Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun has reaffirmed the commitment of his
administration to lifting its people out of poverty, noting that his
administration would continue to look at ways to ensure that it enjoys a
mutually beneficial relationship with the Africa Development Bank (AfDB).
Prince
Dapo Abiodun, who made this known when he received the President of the AfDB,
Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina in his Oke-Mosan Office, expressed his appreciation to
the Bank for choosing the State as one of the special agro-processing zones in
terms of agriculture.
He
noted that there was no reason for the State not to be the food basket of the
country, adding that it has everything going in its favour - with a land mass
of about 16,000 square kilometres, out of which 12,000 is arable.
"I
want to thank you for all you have been to us in the State, particularly your
wise counsel on so many things that we've wanted to embark on. I want to
reassure you that our commitment to lifting our people out poverty is total,
and that is why our vision is very clear about that.
Abiodun
also disclosed that his administration is at an advanced stage of implementing
a new method of road construction in the State, adding that the process which
had begun with three local government areas of the State would be fully
utilised across the State from January.
"We
have begun to investigate an alternative road construction method. We started
with three local government areas of the State. All we need to do is grade the
roads, camper them, have drainages and put this chemical on them. It won't cost
us that much and we can do it on time. I am glad to say that we are going to begin
that process this January. We've tested them, and they've passed the
test," he said.
The
Governor also said that the State is prepared to have the processing zone fully
operational with an airport location, adding that his administration will do
all in its power to ensure that the State makes a success out of its agric
sector.
In
his remarks, the President, Africa Development Bank,(AfDB) said that one of the
five priorities of the Bank was to feed Africa, noting that feeding the
continent requires making agriculture a business that would create wealth and
jobs.
He
commended the Governor for his passion for agriculture, assuring that the Bank
would support the State Government to achieve its set goals in the agric
sector.
"One
of our five priorities in the Africa Development Bank is to feed Africa. Of
course, to feed Africa means we must make agriculture a business for creating
wealth and also jobs and for reviving rural economic activities.
"The
Governor has a clear strategy on that, and I assure him of my full support, and
that of the Bank in supporting their work. We would like to support them to
create a special agro-industrial processing zone that would allow them to
process all range of things from agricultural produce. We are also looking at
forest products as well. It is going to be very important, so I think that
thinking has started. The commitment is there from my side and also from the
Governor's side," he said.
Adesina
noted that the special agroprocessing zones would attract food and agric
businesses into rural areas that have already been enabled with basic
infrastructures like water and power, adding that the presence of rural
dwellers would help add value to everything that is produced in the rural
areas.
"Generally,
in the rural areas of Africa, we have a high level of poverty and that is
actually structural in the sense that the productivity of agriculture is quite
low, so unless we have agriculture working as a business, the farmers would not
have where to sell their produce. Everybody would be coming out of the rural
areas, all drifting into the urban areas.
"So
what the special agroprocessing zone will do is to attract food and agric
businesses into rural areas that have already been enabled with basic
infrastructure like water, power and roads, so they can process and add value
to every single thing that is produced there. Obviously, that will expand the
physical space in the rural areas. It will create quite a lot of jobs. It will
reduce rural-urban drift," he said.
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