FG will make School Agric programme a money spinner –Baraka

During your tenure as Kano State Commissioner of Agriculture, you made an attempt to revive the concept of young farmers’ clubs in schools.Now as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on School Agricultural Programme, do you intend to continue with that programme? During my time as a commissioner, we were able to galvanise all […]

During your tenure as Kano State Commissioner of Agriculture, you made an attempt to revive the concept of young farmers’ clubs in schools.Now as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on School Agricultural Programme, do you intend to continue with that programme?

During my time as a commissioner, we were able to galvanise all the various sectors of agriculture and put them into the limelight like poultry, fishery, and crop production for people to appreciate and actively participate. We carried out a lot of activities involving women and the youth. The training institutes established under my leadership were able to graduate over 6,500 students and women equipped with diverse vocational skills. We were able to establish the first farmers’ radio in sub-Saharan Africa on the AM frequency. During my tenure in that office, we won first position at the national agric competition for three consecutive years. We also received various awards and acknowledgements from world renowned bodies.
At the national level, agriculture is receiving the greatest attention by the federal government under the leadership of Mr. President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. Moreover, Schools Agriculture Programme is Mr. President’s pet project and he has graciously given us the mandate and the necessary support to set up the right structures to ensure national spread and sustainability. I am confident that I will be able to deliver on the programme.
Such programmes are always concentrated in the urban areas.How do you intend to extend this one to the rural areas?
 It is this government’s desire and principle that growth and development are spread evenly and that everyone benefits from the School Agriculture Programme including those located in the rural areas. In the first phase, schools will be evenly spread across all the states of the federation including the FCT. Therefore, I do not foresee a situation whereby the rural areas are excluded.
 What does the school agriculture hope to achieve?
 It is apparent that this government wants to make agriculture a money spinner for Nigeria and Nigerians, so all our efforts will be targeted towards ensuring that the youth are actively involved along the agricultural value chains thereby creating jobs and alleviating poverty which all together will translate to wealth.There will be more awareness and the young farmers will be given a voice. The participants will be exposed to various skills in the areas of agriculture. It is also intended to engender the interests of young Nigerians in agro business as a viable means of employment. This will subsequently lead to the creation of a new generation of committed young practical farmers who will act as catalysts for agricultural development in their communities, enriched with practical skills for life. This is in the short time.
 How do you intend to correct the notion that agriculture is a profession for the aged?
 The new presidential initiative seeks to present school agriculture to the youth as business laced with excitements. In further stirring up the motivations and attractiveness of the programme, activities such as the National Young Farmers Club competitions, national produce festivals, exhibitions, national awards, scholarships, excursions, quizzes, debates, green campaigns among others will be organised. We believe this will eventually change the perception of agriculture as a punishment or a dirty job, or an old man’s profession rather than a business by students.
 You are targeting the youth in school while those that are out of school seem to out number them. Won’t that constitute a challenge to the programme?
Those out of schools will be taken care of by Mr President’s ‘Nagropreneur Programme’ launched in 2013.We need to have a specific target in order for the School Agriculture Programme to be effective, which is why for now our focus is on students. I also believe that the dropouts will be inspired to go back to school and be a part of what is happening by the time they see the activities and the progress being made by the ‘Young Farmers Club.’ We hope to make agriculture more attractive and daring to the youth by way of ensuring that we give the programme the attention it requires.