Gov. Ikpeazu urges govt. officials to own farms


 Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu ,  has directed Abia government officials to own farms to encourage farming activities and boost food production in the state.
This is contain in a statement signed by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr Godwin Adindu, on Thursday in Umuahia.
The statement quoted the governor as saying that the directive was targeted at transforming Abia into the food haven of the country.
``Nigeria is a country with rich agricultural potential and has the capacity to be self-sufficient in food production.
``I urge the Federal Government to initiate programmes that will promote Nigerian foods and encourage attitudinal change among Nigerians towards our home-grown foods.
``Government ought to develop a new policy that will discourage the importation of foreign foods and encourage increased cultivation and consumption of local foods,’’ he said.
Ikpeazu called on the Federal Government to evolve alternative measures for survival in agriculture as the nation has varieties of food that would be sufficient for the people.
``This will encourage economic growth and tackle the prevailing economic glut occasioned by global oil slide, as this is the time for Nigeria to value the richness of its local menu.
``Nigeria cannot be blessed with the kind of arable land it has in the North and the fertile rainforest in the South and still depend on foreign food.
``Abia used to be the sixth producer of cocoa, number one producer of cassava, rubber and palm oil and the current administration is working towards boosting agriculture in the state.
``The state government initiated a programme for massive production of cassava, cocoa and oil palm through the use of the latest specie of oil seedlings, called Tenera,’’ the governor said.
Ikpeazu said that the state government planned to establish a poultry village where youths would be trained on the modern techniques of poultry farming.

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