By Dipo Olowookere
In order to address food security in the state, the Kwara State government has distributed 50,000 cocoa seedlings to farmers as palliatives to cushion the effect of the pandemic on farmers.
The seedlings were given to the farmers at a flag-off ceremony held on Thursday at the Ministry of Agriculture headquarters, Ilorin, with representatives of cocoa farmers from across the 16 local government areas of Kwara state in attendance.
A statement from Modupe Joel, the Chief Press Secretary to the Deputy Governor, Mr Kayode Alabi, stated that the seedlings are for the year 2020 planting season.
Mr Alabi, who doubles as the Chairman, Kwara State Cocoa Development Committee, explained that the action was taken because one of the primary goals of the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration is to increase cocoa production in the state and secure a suitable market for the produce.
According to him, Kwara is known as one of the cocoa-producing states in Nigeria and that the present government will encourage value addition through local processing and encouraging local consumption of cocoa products.
The Deputy Governor emphasised the importance of cocoa to the nation’s economy, stressing that the industry is the second largest foreign exchange earner after crude and generates over two million jobs directly or indirectly along its value chain.
On his part, the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr Muritala Olanrewaju, stated that the main objective of the program was to redress the situation where Kwara farmers migrate to other states to cultivate cocoa.
He commended the administration of Governor AbdulRazaq for changing the narrative, especially in the empowerment of the farmers in all agricultural activities.
Adedapo Adesanya 
Modupe Gbadeyanka