Yemisi Izuora
National Deputy President, Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, Mr Segun Atho, has challenged parents to encourage their children to go into farming.
Speaking at one day capacity training on rice production and input application, orgainsed by the association in Badagry, Lagos, Atho said parents should change their attitudes towards agriculture and encourage their children to embrace agriculture.
According to him, “We cannot continue to import rice and other foods; Nigerians can feed themselves without the help of other countries.
Atho lamented that it is so unfortunate that many young people are still searching for white collar job which is no longer available for them to do.
Atho further said:” Agriculture must be seen as business, not as a hobby. Nigeria has about 95 million hectares of farm land, and 6 million of this land is suitable for growing rice, which makes agricultural sector spacious enough to accommodate large numbers of people who are ready to farm”.
He noted that the association is under the Federal Government anchor borrower program, which makes fund available to farmers in the country.
According to him, they are not giving cash to anybody, but, inputs are given to interested farmers to support their produces.
Atho further explained:” Federal Government has thrown its weight behind the rice farmers in the area of finance and inputs. Our farmers are now taught on modern rice farming for high yield and production, so we can feed the nation with rice.”
He commended Federal government for its various initiatives in supporting the development of agriculture in the country.
“Federal Government in partnership with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had provided a platform that will make farmers achieve their dreams. President Buhari has als provided an enabling environment for every farmer to succeed in Nigeria. Government has equipped rice farmers in the country including some of us in Badagry with inputs such as fertilizers, rice seedlings, chemicals and training. Our land and weather are rice friendly. We have negotiated for land, and presently, we have three tractors on ground, courtesy of President Buhari’s administration and CBN.
“Agricultural sector is the biggest sector that anybody can come into without regret, because now the government has contributed immensely to see that this sector is successful, and the farmers are now ready for farming. We have challenges but we thank God, we are settling them one after the other.
“My plea goes out to all financial institutions, government parastatals and other sectors of the economy to be pro-active in making agriculture a full-time business. They should come out with another blue print that will help the farmers to succeed. They should also invest meaningfully in this sector, because if the farmers have financial back-up from financial institutions, they can conveniently shoulder the responsibility of feeding this nation without stress”, he appealed.