Delta inaugurates 16-man agric marketing coordination committee

Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta State has inaugurated a 16-man Agricultural Marketing Coordination Committee (AMCC) to develop the agricultural sector.

Governor Okowa who inaugurated the committee noted that the agricultural sector deserved to be reformed. He also stated that the inauguration of the committee was in line with the state government objectives of economic diversification, food security, self reliance and development of rural communities.

According to him, it is in consonance with his electoral promise to reform the agricultural sector for the purposes of wealth creation, employment generation, value addition and sustainable economic growth.

“We have invested substantial resources, personnel, time and energy to stimulate agricultural production through the Production and Processing Support Programme (PPSP) and we must do much more than boost the yields from the agricultural sector,” he said.

“The AMCC will tackle the marketing challenges faced by farmers in Delta State and help farmers worry less about finding suitable markets for their produce, while ensuring that they prosper from the work of their hands, thereby make farming attractive once again,” he further stated.

Okowa noted that the Committee will also proffer measures for establishing and improving market infrastructure and facilities such as warehouses, cold storage, output aggregation and processing centres; identify and coordinate actionable measures to encourage market-oriented production by farmers; collaborate with national and international agencies in fostering linkages between farmers and markets.

The governor listed the terms of reference to include identify existing and potential markets for agricultural produce and device measures and arrangements for farmers to access those markets; obtain and disseminate market information to agricultural producers and thereby improve information flow between farmers and processors.

The chairman of the committee, Eric Eboh observed that the committee has a lot of work to do and thanked Governor Okowa for deeming them fit to be members of the committee which he observed would work towards food security’.

IDRIS UMAR MOMOH