By Abiodun Nejo
Lagos State Government and its Ekiti State counterpart have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the cultivation of rice.
Ekiti State Deputy Governor and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Prof Kolapo Olusola, said that the rice project would be executed on 10,000 hectares of land in Ekiti State and would provide job for no fewer than 9,000 youths in the state.
Olusola, who spoke in Ado Ekiti on Thursday while unveiling his campaign agenda tagged SHIELD, which he called “continuity agenda”, said that under the MOU arrangement, Ekiti would provide the land while Lagos would provide the funds and the technical expertise for the rice cultivation.
The PDP flagbearer said that if elected on July 14, he would deliver on his SHIELD agenda, which is a comprehensive blueprint for Security, Health, Industrialisation, Education, Leadership/Governance and Development of Agriculture and Tourism.
He said that his PDP government would attract and encourage investors in the agriculture sector through provision of enabling environment, adding that he would aid the establishment of cottage industries which would have to do with processing of the agricultural products in the state including maize, yam, cassava, plantain and cocoa among others.
Olusola said youths would also be encouraged to farm by the state government through provision and cultivation of lands for them, assistance with farm inputs and buying the output to remove the marketing challenge.
The PDP candidate, who said security was crucial to agricultural growth, economic development and attraction of investors and tourists to the state, said his administration would deploy necessary security with the deployment of ICT to ensure safety of lives and property in all nooks and crannies of the state.
According to the deputy governor who said the Fayose administration had delivered in the area of infrastructural development, said he would add to what the outgoing governor had done by prioritizing construction and rehabilitation of rural roads with sights of ensuring farm produce could be easily transported to the urban areas in addition to focus on intra and inter-township roads.
The deputy governor also spoke on the differences that his administration will make in the areas of human development, health, education and ICT among others.
