Food Security: BoA splashes N9bn on farmers in southeast

Bank of Agriculture has said farmers in the south-east region benefitted from a total of N9 billion loan facilities as part of the effort to fulfill its mandate of boosting food security and promoting the employment of women and young people.


Kabir Mohammed, Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Agriculture, disclosed this assertion to newsmen at Enugu recently when he led a delegation to the state to unveil the bank’s Agriculture Layout.

While acknowledging that the southeast region is full of opportunities waiting to be tapped by interested investors, the delegation listed such potential to include oil palm, cocoa enhancement and rice cultivation, among many others.

Mohammed said the Bank of Agriculture is determined to deliver on one of its mandates of giving support to rural women.

“You must know that there are a lot of women in the rural area that are involved in agriculture in the south- east zone and presently, our intention is to make sure that our activities are extended to them.

“I want to say that we are looking at youth unemployment which is a global phenomenon and we are committed and have projects targeted at improving employment rate in Nigeria. We want to use agriculture to get the youths engaged thereby reducing youth restiveness drastically.”

Meanwhile, the Executive Director, Partnership and Strategy, Dr. Gabriel Okenwa, disclosed that the Federal Government’s strategic focus on the agriculture sector is geared towards producing more food for the citizens and a lot more for export.

“I must say that Nigerians are very hard working and resilient people and with the strategic re-focus in Agriculture now, all hands should be on deck – We will produce enough food for the people and have more for export, and I must say that the Federal Government is doing a lot in Agriculture.”


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