Press Release- Minister of Agric inaugurates Committee on National Farmers’ Day

Chief Audu Ogbeh

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh has inaugurated a committee to plan and organize the first ever National Farmers’ Day celebration in Nigeria.

 

In a press release made available to Food Farm News by the Director of Information FMARD, Mr. Tony Ohaeri, it was stated that chief Ogbeh has inaugurated the committee in his office on Tuesday, 10^th January, 2017 towards ensuring successful celebration of the National Farmers’ Day which is meant to showcase agricultural equipment and products in Nigeria so as to encourage farmers to doing more in agricultural activities.    

The Minister stated in the release that getting Agriculture into the psyche of Nigeria’s elites and government officials was still a problem saying “the need to attract younger people into agriculture is by presenting it as an enterprise worth participating in”

He added that the National Farmers’ Day would be an annual event where each state will showcase their efforts in agriculture with the aim of lifting the sector to where it belongs, and as well as it is hoped to make Nigerians respect and recognize farmers as major nation’s builders.

The Committee which is chaired by the Director, Federal Department of Agriculture, Dr. Babandi Amin Mohammed had all other Directors of the as members. The committee was also given the liberty to co-opt any relevant stakeholder, including one State Commissioner of Agriculture per zone, to support the planning and organization of the celebration.

The committee is to liaise with relevant stakeholders, including farmers associations, State Governments, Civil Society Organizations and youth organizations, with a view to mobilize them for participation in the National Farmers’ Day celebration.

The committee chairman assured that the committee would work as a team to actualize the dream of hosting the event.