Adeleke Paying Lip Service To Agriculture Sector – Expert

An agricultural expert, Femi Adesola, has berated Governor Ademola Adeleke for “paying lip service” to the agriculture sector in Osun State.

Adesola said that despite Adeleke’s speeches at various fora, including the International Cocoa Conference in Lagos and recent agriculture events in London, there were no tangible steps to revitalise the sector.

The expert disclosed this in an article directed to Adeleke last weekend, a copy of which was obtained by OSUN DEFENDER, on Monday.

Adesola stated that it is unfortunate that Osun has the highest food inflation rate of 33% in the South-West, which is embarrassingly falling behind Lagos with less arable land suitable for cultivation.

He said the state commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Tola Faseru, who is a cashew value chain expert, has failed to leverage his expertise to ramp up food production and its value chain in Osun.

According to him, “The agriculture sector in Osun State is ailing and on the brink of collapse under the leadership of Governor Ademola Adeleke.

“Agriculture constitutes approximately 70% of both direct and indirect employment opportunities in Osun, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Neglecting this sector, which serves as a vital source of food, employment, and livelihoods, is not an option. 

“Regrettably, Governor Adeleke has only paid lip service to the plight of the agriculture sector, lacking any actionable plans to complement his rhetoric. Despite his speeches at various fora, including the International Cocoa Conference in Lagos and recent agricultural events in London, tangible steps toward revitalizing the sector remain absent.

“Osun state unfortunately has the highest inflation rate of 33% in the South-West, as per the last inflation report released by NBS, embarrassingly falling behind Lagos with lesser arable land suitable for cultivation. Osun, with over 3000 hectares of farm settlement, does not have any business with high food prices.

“It is safe to say that the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Tola Faseru, who is a cashew value chain expert, has failed to leverage his expertise in cashew and cocoa value chains to ramp up food 

“It is evident that the commissioner and governor lacked the political will to make a result oriented and genuine program to revive the dying Osun state agriculture sector. Even if Agriculture sector is not the Governor’s favourite, it is still needed to be fixed. 

“The out-grower program is a veritable policy that can be deployed and restructured to meet the reality on the ground. The previous government has deployed the out-grower program (OBOPS) in the production of chicken with a revolving loan, where each broiler farmer would be supplied with inputs such as day-old chicks, feeds, medication, and a buyback guarantee. This should not be new to the commissioner.

“The state can also mobilize tractors from OSSADEC to clear significant hectares of arable land, thereby attracting eager youths to engage in farming. These efforts should be complemented by the provision of inputs, training, and extension services.