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JDPC laments poor appropriation for agric in Ondo budget

By Oluwaseun Akingboye, Akure 
25 July 2017   |   4:21 am
The Justice Development and Peace Centre, in conjunction with ActionAid Nigeria, has decried the poor priority given to agriculture by Ondo State government, describing it is as a clog in the diversification policy of the nation. 

Agriculture

• Urges Gov. Akeredolu to domesticate FG Agric Promotion Policy.
The Justice Development and Peace Centre, in conjunction with ActionAid Nigeria, has decried the poor priority given to agriculture by Ondo State government, describing it is as a clog in the diversification policy of the nation.

JDPC, an organisation under the Catholic Diocese of Ondo, lamented this at the weekend while reporting its findings on the state 2017 agriculture budget in Akure.

Based on its budget analysis, it also frowned at the way the budget was being formulated, quick to point out that the 2017 budget on agriculture lacks bottom to top approach.

The Chairman of Public Finance for Agriculture (PFA) Budget Committee, established by JDPC, Chief Akomolafe Pius, said the impacts on small holder farmers, especially women, have devastating effects on the economy.

Akomolafe noted that the trend of agric budget from 2014-2017 shows an acute decrement in agricultural budgetary allocation from the year 2014-2016, though a slight increase in 2017.

According to him, it is obvious that the priority of the state government from year 2014-2017 has been on education and health, rating agriculture third among the three sectors.

“Agriculture in 2014, 2.57%, Health 10.1%, Education 20.65%; in the year 2015, Agriculture was 1.66%, Health 9.8%, Education 22.16%. 2016 allocation: Agriculture 1.10%, Health 11.62%, Education 24.98% while the current allocation, 2017 is: Agriculture 5.12%, Health 10.53% and Education is 21.78%.”

He added that if agriculture was not taken as the priority sector, at best, the gap among the sectors should not be that wide.

He tasked the state government under the leadership of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN) to domesticate the Agriculture Promotion Policy (APP) of the Federal Government in order to alleviate poverty in the state.

The PFA chairman suggested that a separate budget should be put in place for agriculture in the state in order to meet up with farming season.

The budget committee advocated that law should be put in place to enforce release of agric budget at an appropriate time, irrespective of change in government or political instability in the state.

On the agriculture finance/credit, JPDC suggested that government should provide platform for smallholder farmers, especially women, to have access to credit facility so as to finance their farm in their various communities.

Akomolafe urged the Ondo State government to ensure proper implementation and monitoring of 2017 agriculture budget allocations.

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