The ceremony took place on Wednesday in Obafemi Owode Local Government.
In his address, Governor Dapo Abiodun represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture Mrs. Kehinde Jokotoye, emphasized the significance of the initiative, highlighting that 195 rice farmers, 81 maize farmers, and 216 cassava farmers in Obafemi Owode LGA would benefit from the programme.
He acknowledged the efforts of both the Federal and Ogun State Government in providing this opportunity, encouraging farmers to maximize the inputs to ensure food security in the state.
"We should appreciate the federal government and ogun State government for putting this together to support this programme."
The Commissioner of agriculture in Ogun State Hon. Bolu Owotomo who was equally represented by the permanent secretary further stressed the importance of the contributions of traditional farmers, who constitute 90 percent of the food production in the country, and urged the beneficiaries to take full advantage of the programme, ensuring that none of the inputs are misused.
Owotomo also reassured that strict monitoring and oversight would be enforced, with agents and help line staff stationed at redemption centres to oversee the distribution process.
The programme, which focuses on three major crops – rice, cassava, and maize – is designed to provide farmers with inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides.
Owotomo added that the cost of these inputs is heavily subsidized by the federal government, with farmers paying only 25% of the total value.
Meanwhile , Dr. Mrs. Toyin Ajayi, State Director of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, expressed appreciation to the Ogun State Government for its cooperation and support.
She reaffirmed the federal government's commitment to achieve food security across the nation through programmes like the Agricultural Growth Scheme – Agro Pocket.
"The Federal government is aiming towards food security and that's why this programme has been brought to all the state of the federation.
"This programme is supporting 3 different commodities in Ogun state , Rice, Cassava and maize.
"The Federal government will give each farmer for each commodity, input such as the seed to be planted, fertilizer, herbicide, pesticide, to aid our farming.
"For a rice farmer , the total input the rice farmer is going away with cost about N212000, for each farmer. That's why the government is subsidizing this input. The farmer will pay 25% and the federal government will pay 75%.
"For a rice farmer for example, the total input of 212,000, the farmer will pay only a token of 53,000, for maize , the total input of 187,000, the farmer will pay 46,000. I believe that if we get this input, it will enable you to have a higher production.
" Also the government will need a commitment from farmers . The input is not for us to go and sell, it's for us to use.
Also, the state focal person on the Agro Pocket scheme, Mr. Olufemi Akiniyi, disclosed that 492 farmers had been selected from Obafemi Owode Local Government due to its agrarian nature.
He urged farmers to ensure the success of the pilot phase of the programme to encourage further expansion in the future.
According to him, each of the rice farmers got N212,000 worth of inputs, cassava farmers received N189,500 worth of items each while maize farmers got N186,500 each worth of inputs
They are to pay just 25 percent of the worth of inputs received from the government to boost food production
One of the beneficiaries, Mr. Yusuf Hashimiu, expressed his gratitude to the government and encouraged continued support for farmers, while another beneficiary, Mr. Ismaila Akerele, highlighted the positive impact of the initiative on local farmers, noting that many had returned to farming due to the support provided.
