The Oyo State Government, on Wednesday, December 13, 2023, commenced the disbursement of the N1 billion Agric Support Loan to farmers across the state under the Sustainable Action for Economic Recovery (SAfER).

The state government, through the Agricultural Credit Corporation of Oyo State (ACCOS), held the presentation of the cheques to beneficiaries and participating Microfinance Banks at the conference room of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Secretariat in Agodi, Ibadan, the state capital.

Presenting the cheques to the beneficiaries, the Oyo State Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, who also doubles as the Chairman of the SAfER Food Security Sub-Committee, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, noted that the loan support will reduce the cost of food and also sustain the economic recovery of the state.

The commissioner said the loan facility is strictly for farmers and that it is being issued on the merit of applications, noting that the process will not be politicised.

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He stated that qualified farmers will be able to access between N250,000 and N1 million based on the size of their farms, adding that the state government had, under the food security component of SAfER, distributed farm inputs and maize grains to poultry farmers.

The commissioner, who vowed that farmers in all the zones will continue to benefit from the state government’s empowerment programmes, appealed to the beneficiaries to judiciously utilise the loan support and ensure that they return it as and when due for others to benefit.

Also speaking at the event, the Chairman of ACCOS, Sheik Taofeek Akeugbagold, said the exercise which would be in phases and cover all areas of agriculture such as crop, fishery, livestock, and piggery, among others, has been captured and well-integrated under the food security component of the SAfER programme.

He enjoined the beneficiaries to see the loan support as a revolving fund and ensure that farmers are in production to their capacity with a view to sustaining and maintaining food security in the state.

The Star