President Muhammadu Buhari has described the Governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade, as a reference point in Federal Government’s efforts to encourage agriculture.
Government’s efforts to promote agriculture is aimed at reducing the nation’s reliance on oil as its economic mainstay.
Commissioning Cross River State’s seedlings and seed multiplication factory in Calabar on Tuesday, Buhari said the project was in line with his administration’s zero oil economic roadmap.
“When we assumed the rein of leadership of our dear country, our administration launched a zero-oil economic roadmap as a way of making our country less dependent on oil, while encouraging investments in other sectors of the economy, particularly agriculture.
“I am happy that Governor Ayade keyed into that policy and has today become the reference point in our agricultural revolution effort,” he said.
The president who praised the governor for his efforts, said the project had the capacity to produce high yield and disease resistant seeds.
He added that it would also aid job creation and earn revenue for the state.
“The factory, said to be the first in Africa, is an automated plant with a capacity to produce high yielding vitaminized and disease resistant rice seedlings,” the president said.
He explained that the seedlings from the factory would improve rice yield from the current national average of 3 to 4 tons per hectare to about 9 to 10 tons per hectare, thus helping to ensure rice sufficiency in the country and doing away with import and saving foreign exchange for Nigeria.
The president added: “Besides creating employment opportunities for the unemployed, I have no doubt that this rice factory will also be a veritable platform for income generation for Cross River…
“I am further told that the factory has the capacity to meet both foreign and domestic demands. This will go a long way in placing Nigeria on the global rice production map.”
He directed relevant federal parastatals to partner with the state even as he hoped that the factory, alongside other agro-based industries being built by the state would inspire other leaders to key into his vision of ensuring food security for the country.
“With Governor Ayade’s other investments in agriculture such as the ongoing construction of an ultramodern rice mill in Ogoja, the cotton farm in Yala, the cocoa processing plant in Ikom and the Banana plantation in Odukpani, the feed mill and yellow maize farm in Obubra as well as the ultramodern poultry farm for export of frozen chicken amongst others, it is clear that Cross River has found a pathway to decouple itself from over reliance on federal allocation.
“It is evident also that by conceiving projects such as this, Governor Ayade has a keen eye for tomorrow; focusing on projects that are building a new economic base for the state rather than projects with short term benefits for the purpose of making cheap political gains.
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“It is therefore, my hope and expectation that other states that are yet to fully take advantage of the zero-oil economic roadmap of the federal government will take a cue from Cross River State.
“Once again, I commend Governor Ayade for this laudable initiative as our country makes steady and assured progress towards self-sufficiency in food production,” the president said.
Speaking at the occasion, Governor Ayade said the project was fuelled by the decision to invest in agro-allied industries which include the cocoa processing industry, banana plantation, soya bean, calapharm, instant noodles, rice mill, among others.
Ayade called for a standing ovation for the president.
He explained the reason for the standing ovation: “I say so because we have five million hectares of paddy soil in Nigeria, unfortunately, less than 1.7 million hectares of that used to be cultivated; but since you came in with your aggressive programme on rice, the amount of cultivable land has grown to three million hectares and it is rising.”
The governor said the country used to spend about N460 billion importing rice and an additional N60 billion in December, which according to him, “has come down dramatically and saved the pressure on the naira, courtesy of your innovative thinking.”
The governor said with the population statistics, Nigeria faces a “humongous challenge that can lead to absolute social disorder if you don’t take a deliberate step to ensure that we improve on the rice demand and rice supply chain. It was against this background that we realise that we needed to do something very specific on rice cultivation.”
