The need for bold Agricultural practice and the quest for rural development by the government of the Ebonyi State Governor-elect, Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru (FON), Joseph Ikpenyi writes.
For a given geographic area to grow and develop rapidly, there is a need for the development of both urban and rural communities.
While a lot of commercial activities centre their base in urban areas, production activities were mostly settled in rural areas.
In Ebonyi State for instance, the present leadership in the state has done well, especially in the area of necessities such as infrastructural Development but Studies showed that over 95 per cent of the growth in that aspect centred in the urban areas, thus leaving the rural communities with only 5 per cent of the development. In our rural communities, while a lot is expected of the incoming administration in the state, there is an urgent need to build up roads from the urban centres to the rural communities, electrifying and as well industrialising the area to crave ways to modernize our agric produce.
While over 90 per cent of Ebonyians settles in rural communities and have their basic occupations in Agriculture, there is a need for more government attention to be channelled in such areas as this will help boost the economic stability of the state.
Around earlier 50s, Ebonyi people have been notified around the globe and indeed Nigerians as well are very well known in every part of the world for their giant stride in Agriculture but today we are going backwardness and my question is" What happened to the mighty Abakaliki rice?
Where is our sweet Palm oil, yam etc? Although there is a little shift in the production of all these crops due to the government's shift to the oil economy, there is a need for the government at the centre and state to as indeed invest more in the Development of the hinterlands through the rural local council chairmen such as to stabilize not just our Agricultural practice but also a way to curb unemployment that is ravaging this country.
In the same vain, our local council chairmen through the rural development agencies, and the development centre coordinators should consistently initiate programs that will be anchored in training and retraining of our local farmers, youths and women in Agriculture and the end settling them financially after each training for optimum Agricultural harvest, thus making the economy of the state to grow geometrically.
Loans and empowerment programs should be provided for the rural populace while new agric inputs should also be made available as this will not only attract investors for the state but will also attract viable development to our economy.
Today in Ebonyi State, people were not only rejoicing for in a matter of days, power will shift hands but that it will be shifted to a government whose manifestos centred on rural development and human capital development.
The joy of the people knows no bound as the governor-elect, Rt Hon Francis Nwifuru has assured Ebonyians of investing more in Agriculture, harnessing mineral deposit all over the state and empowering our rural farmers.
FON not only knows the importance of Agriculture but is well a practising farmer having to come from the Agrierian community. While the governor-elect assured the state of higher investment in Agriculture, Education, Health and technology, there is a need for us, especially the youths to as well develop the spirit of farming and being top over-dependent on white-collar jobs and oil-shared cake.
Ebonyi is truly blessed.
