Ogun partners FG on fresh fish production, earmarks N11bn for agricultural production

As part of measures taken to bridge the gap the recent ban by the Federal Government on fish importation might create, the Ogun State government has secured an agreement with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development aimed at the production of fresh fish in commercial quantity through “a cage culture system.”

The cage culture system is an advanced fish breeding system put in place by the Federal Government in collaboration with Ogun State at the riverine Iwopin area in Ogun Waterside Local Government, where large fishing nets containing fishes would be placed directly in flowing rivers and guarded with floating materials to make the fishes grow in a controlled environment and protect them from being washed away when the river overflows.

Speaking during an inspection tour of the pilot cage presented to Adijagun Fishermen and Fish Sellers Cooperative Union at Iwopin, Ronke Sokefun, commissioner for agriculture, said collaboration between the Federal Government and Ogun as regards fresh fish production was in line with government’s agenda on improved agricultural production, especially in fish breeding.

Ronke disclosed that the initiative was part of efforts to reduce capital flight and correct balance of payment as well as enhance food production, explaining that breeding method would take only four months for fish to reach maturity as against longer time that would be needed for other methods, just as she pledged distribution of such cages to more fish farmers.

“We believe that this will make fish farming easier because our fishes will be protected in the cage, then sorting and harvesting will also be an easy task.

It will also increase production because fishes in the cage will grow faster than the ones in the river,” she said.

Responding, Stanley Awe, fish farmers coordinator in the area, expressed appreciation to both the federal and state governments for providing cage culture system, assuring that the farmers would make good use of it for the benefit of the people, as Oladipo Omoke, the Balogun of Iwopin town, requested government’s support in renovating fish smoking sheds since the old ones had worn out.

Meanwhile, the Ogun government has earmarked N11 billion for large-scale farming and improved agricultural production this year, planning expansion of state-owned cocoa, oil palm, cotton, kolanut and cashew plantations located across the state, just as it intended to instal a 15,000-capacity hatchery and engage in massive production of point-of-cage pullets.

Speaking on the state’s agricultural development for the year at the 2014 Ogun State budget breakdown held in Abeokuta, Oluwande Muoyo, commissioner for budget and planning, said the budgetary allocation was made for agricultural sector to consolidate on the success achieved last year on agricultural production.

She said government had also acquired about 10,000 hectares of agricultural land for allocation to investors to promote large-scale farming and improved agricultural production, as part of government efforts to provide platform for an agriculture-based industrialisation, adding that the procurement of additional land clearing and farming equipment was underway.

The commissioner however listed the areas of agriculture intervention for this year as the establishment of standard semi-abattoirs in major cities, production of maize seeds, rice seeds and cassava cuttings for distribution to farmers at highly subsidised rates, replication of Owowo model farms in other two senatorial districts and development of hydroponics franchise scheme using greenhouse technology in tomato and pepper production.

By: RAZAQ AYINLA, ABEOKUTA