Oyo State Embraces Farming To Stave Off Economic Crisis

Tomato Farm

As a result of the persisting economic woes facing the country, the Oyo State Government has decided to diversify its economy into farming and mining with a view to improving the financial status of the state.


To ensure a successful diversification of process, the government recently organized an Agriculture Initiative Stakeholders’ Consultative Forum, held at the House of Chiefs, Parliament Building, Ibadan, during which the state governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, attributed the pervading economic woes to the country’s failure to save for a rainy day during the oil boom, worsened by neglect of agriculture.

He disclosed that the forum was aimed at getting stakeholders in his administration to diversify the economy of the state through the exploration of aggressive, all-inclusive and sustainable agricultural value chain.

According to him, the dwindling allocation from the federation account owing to the fall in the price of crude oil in the international market had called for massive investment in farming.

“We did not save for the raining day when there was oil boom in the country. We relied heavily on income from oil. But we have all been jolted into reality now that a barrel sells for an all-time low of $30. Nigeria has depended so much on oil which has now lost its value at the international market. So we have to look for alternative sources of revenue through aggressive investment in agriculture.

“The fall in oil price has done more good than harm as it has opened our eyes to the effectiveness of mechanized farming as our saving grace,” he said.