Senator Balogun Trains 1,130 On Agricultural Value Chain
One thousand, one hundred and thirty people from Oyo South Senatorial District were trained on agricultural value chain and empowerment programme facilitated by Senator Kola Balogun.
The beneficiaries were given a total sum of N31million, with the least of them getting N25, 000 as seed fund to help them in starting farming business on a small-scale.
The programme, held, today, at the Alice Place, Total Garden, Ibadan, was conducted by experts from the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T), Moor Plantation, Ibadan.
The first batch of the two-legged programme was held for the beneficiaries drawn from the seven local government areas in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
The local government areas included Ibadan North, Ibadan North East, Ibadan North West, Ibadan South East, Ibadan South West and Ido.
Declaring the programme open, Senator Balogun said he has been facilitating training and empowerment programmes for his constituents for more than two years, noting that three were conducted in 2021 alone.
He said, he is more interested in training and empowerment as a means to make his constituents to be self-reliant, rather than giving out stipends which he said they may spend on frivolities.
Senator Balogun said training in agricultural value chain would go a long way in lifting people out of poverty and urged the beneficiaries to put the training into good use.
He also assure that he would not relent in facilitating more of such trainings for the people of Oyo South Senatorial District, adding: “I will continue to use my office to serve God and humanity.”
Also speaking, Deputy Director of IAR&T, Dr Jelili Saka, affirmed that the institute had been in a long-term partnership with Senator Kola Balogun, training the people of the senatorial district on agricultural value chain.
He admonished the beneficiaries to make good use of the training, noting that it would require the cooperation of all, starting with the individuals, to revive the ailing national economy.
Dr Saka also solicited support for Senator Balogun as he said: “If there is someone doing well, such a person should be appreciated and his efforts reciprocated.
“Senator Kola Balogun is one of such persons. He has been doing lots of things that are beneficial to his constituents. I am not a politician, but I want to say that he should be appreciated and supported in his political endeavours.”
The beneficiaries were taken through various trainings on agricultural value chain, as Professor Bosede Lawal, also of IAR&T, emphasised its importance, given the escalating cost of food items.
She said virtually all food crops can be grown and livestock reared in any part of the South-West, adding that the beneficiaries can also invest in value addition by turning agricultural products into various end usages.
