Date: 2020-07-18

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has said the state's agricultural masterplan would be ready soon as the government puts final touches to the document.

"Revamping Kwara's economy through agricultural development is one of my campaign promises and I am glad that we are taking steps and setting the right foundation for this with the Kwara State Agricultural Masterplan," he said on Friday during a virtual meeting with the team working on the document.

"I have just had a robust engagement with government stakeholders and the team reviewing the Kwara State Agricultural Masterplan -- an inclusive and holistic roadmap that will set Kwara on path of economic prosperity.

"This Masterplan is unique because it reflects the interests of all players in the agric subsector in Kwara, ranging from farmers' cooperatives, agro-allied industries, livestock farmers' groups and unions, regulators, and financial institutions etc."

He said the document evolved from a robust data gathering process which saw the government team consulting widely with various stakeholders.

"We facilitated a robust data gathering engagement all through the 16 local governments to ensure issues facing stakeholders in the agric sector in Kwara are properly documented and addressed," he said.

"With coherent programmes built on six comprehensive pillars: Crop Production, Livestock Production, Value Chain, Access to Market, Finance and Cross Cutting Areas, I am confident that the masterplan will deliver decent jobs (especially) for youths and women in Kwara, ensure food security and improved livelihood for smallholder farmers, accelerate rural development, and position Kwara as a model state for agricultural development.

"Already, we are aligning with global, regional and local partners such as development agencies, multinational companies, commodity trading companies, agro-allied industries, funding institutions, national governments through their embassies, research institutes and other key partners towards the implementation of the Masterplan after it's been unveiled, very soon!

"I appreciate all the government stakeholders and our partners for their relentless efforts in developing this inclusive plan."

Rafiu Ajakaye

Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

July 18th, 2020