Post COVID-19 era has ushered enormous negative impact of a drop in oil prices on the economy. This situation has given a need to rise and revamp the Nigerian Agricultural sector.
The post COVID-19 reality has dawned once again that Nigeria is a nation abundantly blessed with agricultural resources and vast agricultural products. Frantic efforts, programmes and policies to ensure that agriculture and allied services play a key role in its quest for economic and revenue diversification has been strategized.
Before the eruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Akwa Ibom State government had already set in place measures to support the diversification drive and mitigate the impact of oil price.
In what could be termed, preparing ahead of post COVID-19, the State government demonstrated a commitment to developing the country’s agricultural sector in such a way that the private sector earns a modest return on investment while the government generates revenue and meets with the ever-growing demands for food.
To this end, as part of the private sector-led investment drive of the state government, a lot of projects had been undertaken, many others were being pursued.
These projects are enormous but to mention a few; Cultivation of 11,000 hectares of Coconut Plantation, production of rice for local consumption and sales to other parts of Nigeria and the West Coast, cultivation of cassava plantation in five local governments, animal production and husbandry to ensure that the state is self-sufficient in dairy and meat production, a step a right direction to cushion the effect of post COVID-19.
Others are: cultivation of vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers that were not hitherto grown in the state, establishment of Cocoa Plantations in Ini, Essien Udim, Mkpat Enin, Ikono, Abak, and Ukanafun L.G.As.
In collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the state government commenced the sale of oil palm seedlings at a subsidized rate. 6,000 hectares of land had been designated for the cultivation of cassava.
The state government approved counterpart funds for FADAMA 111 Programme. Under this programme, cassava is targeted for cultivation annually between 2016 and 2019.
The state was expected to cultivate 6,000ha of cassava in 2019 thereby moving the present cluster to core status. Governor Emmanuel approved the reactivation and management of the defunct state premier fisheries at Obio Eket, Nsit Ubium by Merlot Anny Limited.
To put an end to capital flight from the state, an ultra-modern poultry hatchery complex, which will produce at least 520 day-old chicks per day has commenced operation at Mbiaya in Uruan, a relief for the current post COVID-19 effect.
The hatchery, which comprised a feed mill and a breeder farm, had long commenced production. It was expected that the hatchery will attain its full production capacity of 520,000 day-old chicks per week.
The developmental and sustainability status of these projects is strongly questioned due to the prevailing fall in provision of these agricultural commodities in the state especially during the pandemic in which the state solely depended on other states for food consumption and the lock down posed a terrible threat to the transportation of these agricultural products.
Based on this, are we wasting our funds or diverting our funds under the guise of these projects?
Or will the post COVID-19 take a toll on our agricultural sector and throw us into food recession?
Watch out for the part two on this topic!
BY UNWANA-OBONG AKPAN
