The Ogun State Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP) has handed over 16 tricycles to 16 farmer groups across the eight participating Local Government Areas to improve the transportation of agricultural produce and enhance farmers’ productivity.

Speaking at the handover ceremony yesterday, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Hon. Bolu Owotomo, said the intervention was aimed at reducing the cost of transporting farm produce, improving mobility and strengthening agricultural value chains across the state.

Owotomo noted that the IFAD-assisted VCDP has continued to support farmers through various interventions designed to enhance food security, increase agricultural productivity and improve the livelihoods of farming communities in Ogun State.

He urged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the tricycles, warning that the vehicles must not be sold or diverted for commercial purposes unrelated to agricultural activities, stressing that proper maintenance and dedicated use of the tricycles for farming operations would ensure their durability and maximize the benefits of the intervention.

The Commissioner further highlighted other agricultural initiatives of the Ogun State Government, including the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ), OG-CARES and the Ogun State Economic Transformation Project (OGSTEP), all aimed at transforming the state’s agricultural sector.

He disclosed that under the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) intervention, more than 20,000 bags of fertiliser were recently distributed to 5,040 farmers across the state, while 2,700 farmers also benefited from subsidised fertiliser under the SAPZ programme after paying only 20 per cent of the total cost.

Earlier in her remarks, the State Coordinator of the IFAD-VCDP, Mrs. Abiola Sobukola, explained that the procurement of the tricycles followed a comprehensive needs assessment conducted among participating farmer groups to ensure that the intervention addressed their most pressing transportation challenges.

She stated that the beneficiaries contributed 30 per cent of the cost of the tricycles, while the remaining 70 per cent was jointly funded by the Federal Government, the State Government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Alhaji Kamorudeen Shokunbi, Mrs. Abosede Abogunrin and Mr. Moses Olulade expressed appreciation to the Ogun State Government and the IFAD-VCDP for the support, describing the tricycles as a timely intervention that would enhance the movement of farm produce and reduce post-harvest losses.

They pledged to use and maintain the tricycles responsibly in line with the objectives of the programme to ensure that the intervention delivers lasting benefits to their respective farmer groups.