Oyo State Government today announced zero tolerance for
farmlands being left uncultivated by owner-families, saying the government
would always intervene to achieve mutual understanding between landowners and
agricultural investors.
The State Commissioner for Agriculture, Natural Resources
and Rural Development, Prince Oyewole Oyewumi said this today at a press
briefing in Ibadan.
Oyewole said land, being the most important in any
investment should not be made difficult to access by investors who needed it
for agricultural investment, saying for optimum benefit to be derived from
Nigeria’s campaign for agricultural revolution, land must be made available.
“Oyo State government’s intensive engagements with local
communities have reflected that agriculture is the mainstay of a large
percentage of our people but despite that the State has 2.5million hectares of
arable land, investors have been experiencing difficulties in land
availability.
“The government has therefore approved sensitization
campaign to encourage use of land for agricultural purposes. A committee has
been set up for agricultural land policy with the tag, ‘zero tolerance for idle
agricultural land’ to boost production, employment and food security.”
The Commissioner urged owners of family lands and lands
owned by communities to give land out to investors in farming through rent,
lease or outright selling to prospective investors, promising that government
would not shirk its responsility to facilitate flexible agreement between
landowners and agricultural investors.
He said the State government had introduced flexibility into
the program to enhance mutual cooperation between landowners and investors in
their transactions.
“Government will continue to facilitate smooth transactions
between landowners and agricultural investors for the State to reposition
itself as the food basket of Southwest Nigeria.”
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