Mr. Kenneth Awala, Director of Agric Services, Delta State (6th Left), Mrs. Rachael Ruppee, President of SHOWFAN (5th Left), members of SWOFON, and Senior and Junior personnel of Ministry of Agric, Delta State.
ASABA/Nigeria: Small Scale Women Farmers Oganisation of Nigeria, SWOFON, Delta State Chapter, has appealed to Delta State government to channel more resources to agriculture to boost farm yields in the state.
The call was made recently when the body visited the Director of Agric Services, Delta state, Mr. Kenneth Awala at his office in Asaba, capital of the state.
The President of the Small Holder Women Farmers Network (SHOWFAN), a collaborative body to SWOFON, Mrs. Rachael Ruppee, told the Director of Agric services that the numbers of women farmers have increased in the state with more farms created over the years, thus resulting in a boost in food production across the state.
Continuing, Mrs. Ruppee said that more support from the government of Delta State was needed to sustain the growth in the agricultural sector of the state’s economy.
She recalled that efforts made by the women farmers to benefit from the Anchor Borrowers’ programme were to no avail. She called on the Director of Agric Services to use his office to ensure the members of SWOFON benefit from the scheme.
Mr. Awala expressed satisfaction at the commitment of the women farmers towards building capacity in the agriculture sector.
He said that the Agric ministry would incorporate the women farmers into its programmes to enhance the capacity of the women farmers in line with the developmental template of the governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s SMART agenda with regard to attaining food security and diversification the state’s economy.
Mr. Awala who expressed surprise that the women farmers have not benefited from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sponsored Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme, assured the women that their applications for the loan would be given due consideration when next batch of the scheme comes into operation.
He urged the women farmers to sustain their commitment to agriculture, saying that they would benefit in subsequent agriculture programmes of the agric ministry tagetted at increasing cassava and other crops production.
