2025 budget to prioritise agric, ensure food self-sufficiency in Ekiti

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, has restated his administration’s commitment to food security for residents of the state through various collaborations with investors in agribusiness and young farmers, stating that his target for 2025 is to record a significant increase in production in the sector to feed the people.

Oyebanji made this indication over the weekend while inspecting the Bring Youth Back into Agriculture Project farms in Oke Ako Ekiti, Iyemero Ekiti, and Gede in the North Senatorial Districts on Saturday.

The governor, who was accompanied on the visit by some top government officials, disclosed that the state’s budget for 2025 would focus more on agriculture in an effort to ensure food sufficiency and make Ekiti the food basket of the country.

The governor assured that those whose farms were acquired and for whom enumeration was completed would receive their compensation within two weeks. He pleaded with them to maintain decorum with the investors and the youths carrying out farming in the area.

Oyebanji also expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for providing the necessary impetus for the state to thrive in agriculture and other sectors, saying that his administration will continue to provide economic opportunities for youths in the state and position them to be employers of labour.

“I’m superbly excited about the outcome of our agriculture strategy. A few months ago, we flagged off this program, ‘Bring Back Our Youths Into Agriculture,’ and I believe strongly that the only way to prosperity is productivity, and bringing our youths back to work; the government has to provide the platforms for them.

“We partnered with our people and YSJ, a private sector agricultural company, to work out a strategy to bring back our youths to agriculture, where the government cleared land for them free of charge and subsidised inputs by fifty percent. I am just going around today to see the outcome of these efforts, and I am happy that it has turned out this way.

“What this has taught me is the fact that Ekiti youths are not lazy; Ekiti youths are productive; they can work, and what they need is just the platform. I have always been saying that Ekiti can rival any state in the federation, but as a government, we need to provide the platform for people to exhibit their potential, and this is what we have done.

“Next year’s budget is going to focus on welfare and agriculture; we have done a lot with infrastructure, education, and health. The time has come for us to feed our people, and my target for next year is to grow enough food to feed Ekiti people.”

At Oke Ako Ekiti, Oyebanji applauded the youths for their dexterity and commitment to the success of the project, assuring the people that his government had already concluded plans to commence rehabilitation of the road from Ayedun to Oke Ako, with a pledge to also provide electricity to the town within a short time.

He also hailed the people of Iyemero Ekiti and Gede for their support for the projects, adding that road infrastructure would be prioritised in the area to enhance the movement of produce.

“Despite the shortage of rain this year, you are not discouraged. We are looking at a process whereby we provide irrigation and also provide each of you with a pair of raincoats and boots. We will also provide a vehicle to each of the groups to allow for easy mobility and make the farms accessible at all times.

“Please note that the support I am giving you was provided by President Bola Tinubu; the state government doesn’t have that kind of resources. I went to him and told him I wanted to get involved in agriculture. He gave us that support, and I promised myself that when we get those resources, we will invest them in agriculture. So, from those resources, we should be able to get a bus for each group,” the governor stated.

The youths at the various farm sites had earlier outlined their demands from the government, including the provision of buses to give them easy access to their farms, free inputs, agricultural loans, accommodation for farmsteads, and the rehabilitation of roads to the farms, among others.