By Segun Folarin

Nigeria has recorded an appreciable increase in food production while more than five million citizens, comprising women and youths have benefited from the country’s partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development, IFAD within the last 7 years. 

The disclosure was made by key speakers at the technical consultations on IFAD Nigeria’s Country Strategic Opportunities Programme, COSOP design for the South West Region, held in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

Highlighting the achievements of IFAD programmes between 2016 and 2023, a representative of the Country Programme Advisory Team, CPAT, Abuja, Mr Thomas Yisa said the major increase was recorded in the production of rice, cassava, groundnut and maize. 

Also, the mission team leader, Dr Oyesola Oyebamiji who acknowledged that various IFAD intervention programmes had made great impacts on beneficiaries said the meeting was aimed at designing a new policy framework to guide the operations of smallholder farmers in the Southwest region for another period of five years.

In a remark, The Ogun State Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr Adeola Odedina who applauded the IFAD for partnering the state said the government would continue to enhance the capacity of smallholder farmers to thrive.

The State Programme Coordinator, Value Chain Development Programme, Mr Samuel Adeogun had earlier pointed out that 17 thousand farmers across eight participating local government areas of the state had benefited directly from the intervention while others had been impacted through attendant effects on income generation.

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