By Ebriku John Friday
In line with Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu-led administration’s Project Grow, the management of Santuscom Agro Investment Group, owners of Ogoja Rice brand (vitaminised & 100% stone free) and Ogoja Palm Oil, has concluded plans to partner with the state’s Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation Development on food production and food security.
The Managing Director/CEO of SANTUSCOM AGRO Investment Group, Chief Ofana Paul Santus, who visited Cross River State Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, Hon. Johnson Andiambey Ebokpo in his Office, briefed the commissioner, where they both agree to partner, boost production and guarantee food security.
According to Chief Ofana, the visit became necessary, hence, the sincerity of purpose and honesty of intention of His Excellency Senator (Prince) Bassey Edet Otu, Governor of Cross River State, and his “People First,” Agenda, and the Commissioner’s passion to drive the Agricultural Sector purely business based.
He said, “We are here primarily on a familiarisation tour and to seek ways on which we can partner with the State through the Ministry of Agriculture on how we can harness the Agricultural potentials, and key into the vision of the State Government to contribute our quota for food self-sufficiency.
“We have been in business for over 5 years and never has the State in the last decade shown commitment to take advantage of our potentials available because we have identified in the past years that the State is very rich in Agriculture, hence to drive the sector as a business and a major source of internally generated revenue (IGR) to alleviate her financial quagmire, which previous government only play politics in the sector, lip services and fun fare.
“It’s time for our people to begin to enjoy the benefits of Agriculture and the rice-chain incentives and especially the young people to understand what truly going into Agriculture entails; and not the approach in the past in providing loans without training, monitoring, supervision and off takes of the farm produces which is the only sure way to grow agribusiness. Agriculture shouldn’t be seen as a dirty and poor profession”
Chief Ofana, said his conviction to partner with the State is based on the “capacity to render training, develop a database who can participate and where?, aggregating and formation into clusters for easy monitoring and evaluation from our Farmers Field School in Ogoja, were we draw resource persons and the best of professionals from the industry to come and impart knowledge over a given period on how to go into commercial farming with the benefits that come with the key areas of irrigation rice farming taking a cue from our over 1000 hectares Irrigated Rice Farm in Yala, and how can they even get their produce to the market.
“It’s a proposal we want to get across to the Government to work out a partnership to better the State Agricultural sector in its entirety so that we can be exporting Agricultural products and that’s why we are here to proffer our expertise. If you see the way the anchor borrowers were fashioned and designed couldn’t work by transferring money directly to purported farmers’ accounts and expected to make some returns and pay back the loans. It’s a good idea that the Government is thinking again in that direction for farmers and young people to benefit, trying to guarantee arrangements, but this hasn’t as a result of variables that we are coming to proffer solutions to,” he concluded.
Responding, the Honourable Commissioner of Agricultural and Irrigation Development thanked Chief Ofana and his Team for the courtesy visit and pre-briefing proposal as noble and appreciated the interest to key into the vision of the Governor Otu-led Administration especially in the Agro Sector that will eventually become the major generator of revenue and employer of labour in the State.
The Agriculture Commissioner said, “I welcome you all on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation Development. We appreciate your pre-proposal briefing taking into cognizance of our overloaded schedule throughout the day and we thank you for that understanding.
“We know you, we know your farm Ogoja and Yala and how you have built capacity over the years and we today have a brand called Ogoja Rice that is sold in different parts of Nigeria. And for us here, we want to encourage you and others to invest in the Agricultural and Irrigation Sector. We have heard you very loud and clear, and we know you are talking about ‘Project Grow’. The project’s desktop activities will take place when Stakeholders like you come together and sit to deliberate on a lot of issues before the project is rolled out.
“What we want to tell you is that, we deliberately want upscale rice production and luckily for us, you have a major paddy processor. So it is on the basis that we know that by the time you can get more paddy, we can scale up your activities with the School Farming Scheme/Project that will bring in early farmers and not wait until they retire before venturing into Agriculture. Let’s catch them young from Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary, so they grow up to become Agronomists, Agricultural economists, and Soil Scientists because this is what is obtainable in Kebbi, Plateau, and Kano.
“There’s a need for us to get them interested so that they can go on to specialized and not just a general knowledge person and only so doing that than the Governor Otu’s Agric Revolution be sustained and outlive his legacy,” he concluded.
In attendance was the Permanent Secretary, Mr. Ekpe Bassey, Director of Administration, Mr. Christopher Achong, Director, Agric. Services, Mr. Henry Etta, Director Planning, Research and Statistics, Mr. Cliff Oyira, and Director Tree Crops, Mr. Ubi Ubana, amongst others.
