Date: 2018-02-16

Stakeholders in the agricultural sector in Kwara state have said that agriculture remains the only exit route for Nigeria out of the current persisting economic recession.

Speaking at the official launch of an agricultural farm estate, Heart and Capital Limited in Ilorin on Thursday, traditional rulers, youth in agriculture and government officials in the state, unanimously, said that agriculture is the future of the nation.

One of the traditional rulers, the Olojoku of Ojoku town in the Oyun local government area of the state, Oba Abdulrazaq Adegboyega, and the former special adviser to the governor said that the nation's food security would be assured when individuals and government participated in agriculture.

The traditional ruler, who also said that agriculture had become a major focus of foreign exchange earning, said that government and corporate organizations should do more at encouraging youth in agriculture.

Mr Ibiwoye, who said that agriculture is now a major focus for employment and empowering young people, added that agriculture is no longer a business to treat with local equipment.

"A lot of innovation has come into agriculture. A lot of information is available on agriculture and a lot of research is ongoing on agriculture. We must understand the timing of the kind of seeds, fertilizers used and the composition of all of those things. Those are things that call for seriousness, understanding and knowledge. So the face of agriculture is changing.

"When you take all of these together, you will realize that agriculture is now a business that is profitable, sustainable and it is a business we must focus on out of our myriad of economic problems in the country, which are unemployment and food insecurity. We also need to produce raw materials to feed our industries; when our industries are working more people will be employed.

"All of these together will help the country to move forward. It is a major source of kick-starting the economy. So it must be taken seriously now." Also speaking, a co-founder of the agricultural initiative, Mallam Umar Adelodun, who said that the group was set to create windows of opportunities for Nigerian youths on the need to discover more sustainable business acumen towards a reliable future, added that there was the need to support the advocacy for diversification of the nation's economy.

Mallam Adelodun, who said that the farm estate would offer services such as Professional Farm Management and farm Consultancy, added that individuals and corporate organizations could engage in farming themselves in an enabling environment or engage farming byproduct.

He also said that the project would provide farm business training for youth, adding that the major target is the youths.

I hereby use this medium to call on government at all levels, corporate organizations, individuals across the country, to key into these projects of revolutionizing the Agricultural Sector through our numerous windows/platforms of a bountiful harvest with even options of little or no physical commitment and maximum security assurance.