From Isaac Job, Uyo
Akwa Ibom State Governor Umo Eno has supported President Bola Tinubu’s donation of 24,000 bags of rice to the state to cushion the effects of hardship and improve food sufficiency for families.
Eno also donated farm seedlings to farmers to encourage them to continue to plant crops to tackle the prevailing food crisis in the state.
Addressing a press conference in Uyo on Friday, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Offiong Offor, observed that the nation is facing hunger caused by food insufficiency and inflation, adding that creative thinking and taking responsibility are needed instead of blame games, which can only worsen the situation.
The commissioner explained that the additional bags of rice donated by Governor Umo Eno aim to reach more families who need support under the present conditions.
“We are currently facing a significant developmental challenge: hunger caused by food insufficiency, unavailability, and inflation. This issue, a direct result of macro-economic factors, poses a challenge to both federal and state governments,” she said.
“According to our leader, Governor Umo Eno, times like these require creative thinking and taking responsibility, rather than indulging in blame games, which only worsen the situation.
“In response, Governor Eno has decided to augment the federal government’s donation by adding 24,000 bags to their 24,000 bags of 20kg rice. This initiative aims to reach more families with much-needed support.”
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Offor conveyed Pastor Umo Eno’s appreciation to the federal government for its care and responsiveness during this critical time and highlighted the state government’s alignment with the current struggles faced by citizens.
“Through this food intervention, each of the 2,272 gazetted villages in the state will receive 20 bags of rice. This is in addition to the over 100,000 families from the social register who have already received, or will soon receive, free food items from the state government through the Bulk Purchase Agency,” she said.
“This intervention aims to mitigate the hardship currently faced by our citizens, reducing extreme hunger and poverty in line with Sustainable Development Goal 1.
“A hungry populace can lead to unrest, making food availability, affordability, and security a priority for this administration.”
The Commissioner for Agriculture disclosed that the long-term solution to hunger is the “Back to Farm” programme initiated by the state government to increase food production.
She said the State Ministry of Agriculture has implemented some intervention mechanisms to ensure lasting solutions to hunger, such as the provision of seedlings to farmers, as well as livestock supplies to farmers in the state.
“The Ministry of Agriculture has implemented several strategic interventions, including distributing cassava cuttings, maize grains, pepper seedlings, and coconut seedlings to 135 public primary and secondary schools,” she said.
“Additionally, we have distributed 150,000 cocoa seedlings to cocoa farmers, 40,000 oil palm seedlings to oil palm farmers, 80,000 pepper seedlings to vegetable farmers, 20 metric tonnes of rice shared to rice farmers across the state, and livestock and poultry supplies to poultry farmers.
“Furthermore, we have provided livelihood grants of N150,000 to 1,560 beneficiaries and agricultural inputs and services to 900 farmers under the AKCARES Scheme.”