Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, has acknowledged receiving 3,000 bags of rice from the Federal Government.
The gesture was part of plans to mitigate the effects of the fuel subsidy removal on residents of the state.
He said the state government would procure 37,000 more bags. This is to be able to reach out to 200,000 poorest of the poor households in the state.
The governor made the disclosure in his latest official newsletter, dated 10 August, 2023.
“It’s been another very busy two weeks for me. With the cabinet in place, we have gone straight to work in delivering good governance to our people.
“Recently, I travelled as part of the President’s entourage to Benin Republic. We had talks on border trade and cooperation at the sidelines of their Independence Day celebration.
“As you may already know, Oyo State shares international borders with the Republic of Benin. I am looking forward to the economic gains that we will make from that engagement.
“I am always interested in local and international cooperation that will strengthen the Oyo State economy.
“This is why instead of speaking of palliative measures – which deal with symptoms but do not actually solve the problem – here in Oyo State, we introduced sustainable actions through the SAfER Programme.
“SAfER means Sustainable Actions for Economic Recovery.
“If you listened to my broadcast regarding this, you would know that through SAfER, we plan to stimulate our economy through short-term plans that will have long-term effects.
“Yes, we have some direct interventions, such as the Food Relief Package to 200,000 of the poorest of the poor households.
“But that also serves to stimulate the economy as most of the items in the package are sourced locally.
“A big part of the SAfER package is the Oyo State government’s One Billion Naira commitment to fund youth agropreneurs and small businesses.
“We also have inputs distribution to smallholder farmers. In thinking sustainably, instead of handing out grants, we are opting for low-interest loans.
“When these loans are repaid, the beneficiaries can get more loans, and on and on.
“I am happy to report that we have already kick-started the SAfER execution process with the inauguration of an implementation committee.
“They will be working with all the relevant agencies to ensure that the programme is properly delivered.
“I can also report that we have already started the procurement of the items which will go into the food relief package.
“We received 3,000 bags of rice from the Federal Government. We are procuring 37,000 more so that each of the 200,000 households can get 10kg bags of rice.
“This is in addition to other items we are procuring locally.
“We will continue to ensure that we deliver good governance to our people.
“We know that taking sustainable actions is the SAfER way to go.
“This is why our Omituntun 2.0 manifesto is titled the Oyo State Roadmap for Sustainable Development 2023-2027,” Governor Makinde stated in the newsletter.
