By Nurudeen Alimi
IN a bid to enhance food production and security in the state, the Lagos State Government has flagged off the Eko Agro Mechanisation Scheme.
With this initiative, over 3,000 farmers with the ability to efficiently and smoothly prepare over 9,000 hectares of land would be provided mechanisation access.
Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms Abisola Olusanya, made this known during the flag-off ceremony of Eko Agro Mechanisation Scheme
and noted that the scheme would lead to increased food production, which will help lower prices and afford Lagosians a higher disposable income; and provision of a positive impact on the economic growth of the state by creating a means of livelihood for the unemployed.
According to her, the approach to farm mechanisation called Tractor–On–The-Go (TOG) was improved upon from the Tractor Hiring Unit (THU) and can be accessed through an application known as TOG world and is available for download on Google Playstore and IOS Store.
She noted that farmers can now request tractors and their accompanying implements from the comfort of their farms, in a manner similar to taxi hailing services via a smartphone.
“As such, they now have access to agricultural machineries without being physically present at the tractor centres, which makes the process both seamless and transparent.
“20 tractors, 12 ploughs, 10 harrows, seven tipping trailers, two boom sprayers and other equipment were procured to kick-start the scheme. These shall be stationed in the three strategic agrarian zones of the state, Badagry, Ikorodu and Epe and would serve different farming clusters. The primary objective of the programme, according to the permanent secretary of the ministry, Mrs. Olatokunbo Emokpae, is to ensure unrestricted access to farm mechanisation services, particularly for smallholder farmers, through a cost-friendly approach. She pledged that the ministry would not give up in its efforts to use technology and mechanisation to advance food security in order to realise the vision for a larger Lagos.
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