- Ogun state has launched its own local rice known as Ofada rice
- The rice which goes for N11,500, is packaged in 50kg bags and named Mitros rice
- The CBN governor applauded the state government for the initiative
The Ogun state government has started the sale of its locally produced rice known as Ofada rice and was formally launched by Governor Ibikunle Amosun.
Premium Times reports that the rice which goes for N11,500 was unveiled on Thursday, December 21.
According to the governor, the rice named Mitros rice is packaged in 50kg bags.
Amosun said it was tragic that Nigeria had to depend on food import but said with this new production, Ogun farmers will not have to travel far to mill their rice.
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He said: “This has weighed heavily on the nation’s economy as it exerted pressure on foreign reserves and value of the naira with attendant needless outsourcing of agricultural work to distant countries.
“For us in Ogun State, we cannot afford to sit back and watch our people suffer unnecessarily due to food insecurity. The availability of food is synonymous with the survival of the society as a whole.
“Our past efforts at tackling poverty in all ramifications will amount to nothing if concerted efforts are not taken to ensure food security to people at all income levels. This is why today is a significant day, not just for Ogun State, but for Nigeria as well.
“The MITROS Rice Mill, the first of its kind in Ogun State, will create jobs for our farmers. From now on they will no longer need to travel far and wide in search of milling facilities.”
“This not just about the commissioning of a new processing factory and all its benefits, processing capacity, direct and indirect jobs, economic growth, and so on, it is also about the unveiling of a new narrative for Ofada rice.
“The new and improved Ofada rice that this mill will produce will not only feed our people, but we are confident that it will generate foreign exchange for us, as a nation.”
The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, applauded the Ogun state government and said the government would give credit facility to farmers at five percent interest.
“A country that does not take agriculture seriously is naturally an unserious country.
“I am happy today that under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, we are taking agriculture very seriously and that is the reason we at the Central Bank of Nigeria have made it a responsibility to say we would continue to support any effort and anybody in an attempt to grow our agricultural sector.”
Abubakar Bagudu who is the chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Commodities and Agricultural production said: “All the 36 states of Nigeria have the capability of producing rice even of course the FCT. With rice, I believe we can achieve what we have achieved even with a commodity like crude oil, because around the world, about 600 million metric tons of rice is produced every year, and Nigeria, we are still producing a little less than 10 million,” he said.
“Our land size estimated by the Rice Farmers Association indicated that there are about 12 million rice farmers. This suggests that even if an average yield per farmer is the modest 5 tons, we should be producing 50 million tons, not under 10 million tons we are currently producing.”
Meanwhile, the Ogun state police command on Tuesday, December 19, arrested 20 students of the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY) for allegedly destroying public and private property in Abeokuta metropolis during a protest.
The students also allegedly injured a policeman during the protest, Premium Times reports.
The police have since taken over the Pansheke area of Abeokuta to prevent further protest from the students.
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Source: Naija.ng