By Emmanuel Oluwakorede
Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo has solicited more support for the success of Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) in the State.
Governor Ododo was speaking when he received a delegation from L-PRES Headquarters led by its National Project Coordinator, Alh. Abubakar Sanusi, who were in the State for Assessment Tour of the Project in the State.
The Governor, who was happy with the activities of the World Bank project in the State, said youths and women will soon be empowered to boost poultry farming in the State.
He commended the State Project Coordinator of L-PRES and his management team for implementing the project in line with international standards, assuring of his support in a bid to boost food security in the State.
Gov. Ododo, who launched a compendium of the Project in the State told his guest that the State is ready to provide the needed support for the proposed establishment of Livestock Service Centre which is expected to be located at the Confluence University of Science and Technology Osara.
“Livestock Service Centre is a project my administration is not toying with. Myself standing before you, I was born as a farmer. The economic crisis Nigeria is facing today is because we abandoned agriculture.
He described the L-PRES Project as a people orientated programme and appealed to the National Coordinator to ensure that the Livestock Productivity Centre is established in the State.
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Hon. Timothy Ojomah informed the Governor that the Federal Government through L-PRES had donated 500, 000 Anthrax Spore Vaccines to enhance animal health.
According to him, the team were in the State on assessment visit and to commission two projects and applauded the Governor for his commitment to the resuscitation of Agriculture in the State.
Also speaking, the L-PRES National Project Coordinator, Alh. Abubakar Sanusi noted that the visit was to ascertain the level of preparedness of the State for the establishment of the Livestock Service Centre.
“Your Excellency, let me start by appreciating your effort in the Agriculture sector generally, not only Livestock. The Agriculture Mechanisation going on in Kogi is second to non. We know how you are going on with your mechanisation farming, touching the lives of the real farmers by having a database, giving inputs and provision of tractors, we have all this information.
He noted that in the Area of profiling of livestock farmers, Kogi L-PRES ranked the best among the States where the project is being executed.
The National Project Coordinator appealed to Governor Ododo to provide more support especially in the Area of counterpart funding and provision of logistics for the administration of the Anthrax Spore Vaccines.
The Chief of Staff to the Governor, Alh. Ali Bello, State Project Coordinator of L-PRES, Dr. Olufemi Bolarin, Special Adviser to the Governor on Agriculture, Hon. Otaru O. Abdulkabir and the Managing Director of Kogi ADP, George Bello were present at the meeting.
