FADAMA III Partners Institutes For High Yielding Seed Varieties

The Permanent Secretary, Oyo State Ministry of Agriculture, Natural  Resources and Rural  Development, Mr. Victor Atilola, says  FADAMA III Additional Financing Project  will collaborate with research institutes for high yielding seed varieties.
Atilola said this at a one-day retreat  organised  for FADAMA III Additional Financing   technical  committee  members in Ibadan.
The Permanent  Secretary said that the issue of research was dynamic  and change  was paramount  and  stressed the need for  farmers to be abreast of latest agriculture  technologies and inputs.
He said FADAMA III Additional Finance Project would not be able to grow if farmers had no knowledge  of contemporary farming techniques, especially in the  area of  rice and cassava production which was the main focus  of the project.
He added that, “linking up with relevant  research institutions that have the mandate  of these crops would boost farmers’  production  and made them be on the same page with modern technology in agricultural  production”.
The Permanent  Secretary advised farmers to have  a change of attitude, saying some  farmers had  benefitted from agricultural  credit loan of Central Bank of Nigeria, but were yet to made the returns in the past three years.
Atilola  said government had only recovered 40 per cent of the loan and urged farmers to make returns so that others who were yet to benefit would be able to do so.
In his contribution, the Oyo  State Coordinator of FADAMA III Additional Finance, Mr. Nathanal  Olayinka,  said the retreat was essential because the decision making body of FADAMA project converged and deliberated on achievements  recorded so far.
Olayinka said the retreat was also aimed at discussing  challenges and looked at ways  of solving them.
He advised farmers  those who benefitted from FADAMA III Additional Financing Project to be  serious with what they were  doing  and take  farming  as business and not as subsistence activity.