March 28, 2024

KGSG to revamp its agro-allied company

Kogi State Government has expressed confidence that its agro-allied company in an Ofu Local Government village would be revamped for higher productivity.

The government through its Commissioner for Agriculture, Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba, made this known to Inside Story Saturday, while inspecting facilities at the company’s site in Alloma village.

The Commissioner, in an exclusive interview with our correspondence, lamented that the ten-year-old gigantic 4, 000 hectares Alloma Oil Palm Company Plantation is underutilised. He expressed the need to sink more resources towards ensuring that opportunities accruing from the agro-based complex are harnessed in order to boost economic development in the state.

He said if the place is properly maintained and maximised productively, it would go a long in boosting the agricultural industrial capacity of the state and improve its Internally Generated   Revenue.

According to him, the place needs a Milling Centre to add value to the fossils contained therein, stressing that it would increase productivity and add cash relevance to the crops.

He said of the 3,500 palm cannel trees on the plantation can improve the state’s economy, acknowledging that the necessity of developing the remaining 3, 600 hectares of land further with improved seedlings for rapid productivity.

“There is need for government to put in the required resources to harness the benefits that are locked up in terms of revenue and general economic development of the state. We definitely cannot continue to wait for the Federal Government to meet our developmental challenges. The place can also create employment for the youths of the area and help in the state’s contribution to the nation’s quest for food sufficiency,” he said.

Earlier in his address, the Acting General Manager of Kogi State Agro-Products and Allied Companies, Mr. Alex Olukayode highlighted the problems of the plantation to include the need to “prune, slash and fall the big tree,” and then add fertilisers to the crops for rapid yield.

He said an Oil Mill is also needed to increase productivity and halt the current practice where the oil palm fruits are harvested and sold to the local women which has little economic benefits to the state.

“The present situation needs to have values added to it; to do that, we need to mill the product ourselves, sell the red oil, the palm oil, the palm cannel cake and other products that come with the fruit. That is the best practice in other places that help them make money from having such plantations,” he added.

He further called on government to expand the place by ensuring that the 3, 600 fallow land belonging to the company is utilised to increase productivity as it can employ a workforce of about 20, 000.

He explained that “Every year, the company constructs 32 Kilometre Fire Shelter Belts to keep fire away from flaming the plantation. Currently, the company employs the local residents for many of the jobs of maintaining the place to its current yielding capacity. If the needed turnarounds are carried out, it would increase the number of persons it needs to take it to optimal productivity.”

In his own reaction, the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Hon Edward Onoja, who was part of government entourage reminded the people that as part of Governor Bello’s five thematic areas that formed his blueprint for the development of the state, job creation is the number three and that the government is going to achieve it using three sectors including agriculture, mining and eco-tourism.

He bemoaned a situation where only 10% of the 4, 000 hectares of land allotted to the Alloma Oil Palm Plantation has been utilised, and stressed that the present government of Yahaya Bello is ready to make necessary resources available in view of the economic viability of the company.

Onoja, who promised that Governor Bello would not allow the place to suffer the same neglect it suffered under the previous administrations in the state, stressed that the Governor would take a huge interest in the project as it would go a long way in assisting the present administration in fulfilling its agenda for increased revenue generation, youth empowerment and job creation.

He therefore expressed the hope that once their report is submitted to Governor Yahaya Bello, the needed attention would be given the plantation so as to bring out the social and economic boost for the development of the state.

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KGSG to revamp its agro-allied company

Kogi State Government has expressed confidence that its agro-allied company in an Ofu Local Government village would be revamped for higher productivity.

The government through its Commissioner for Agriculture, Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba, made this known to Inside Story Saturday, while inspecting facilities at the company’s site in Alloma village.

The Commissioner, in an exclusive interview with our correspondence, lamented that the ten-year-old gigantic 4, 000 hectares Alloma Oil Palm Company Plantation is underutilised. He expressed the need to sink more resources towards ensuring that opportunities accruing from the agro-based complex are harnessed in order to boost economic development in the state.

He said if the place is properly maintained and maximised productively, it would go a long in boosting the agricultural industrial capacity of the state and improve its Internally Generated   Revenue.

According to him, the place needs a Milling Centre to add value to the fossils contained therein, stressing that it would increase productivity and add cash relevance to the crops.

He said of the 3,500 palm cannel trees on the plantation can improve the state’s economy, acknowledging that the necessity of developing the remaining 3, 600 hectares of land further with improved seedlings for rapid productivity.

“There is need for government to put in the required resources to harness the benefits that are locked up in terms of revenue and general economic development of the state. We definitely cannot continue to wait for the Federal Government to meet our developmental challenges. The place can also create employment for the youths of the area and help in the state’s contribution to the nation’s quest for food sufficiency,” he said.

Earlier in his address, the Acting General Manager of Kogi State Agro-Products and Allied Companies, Mr. Alex Olukayode highlighted the problems of the plantation to include the need to “prune, slash and fall the big tree,” and then add fertilisers to the crops for rapid yield.

He said an Oil Mill is also needed to increase productivity and halt the current practice where the oil palm fruits are harvested and sold to the local women which has little economic benefits to the state.

“The present situation needs to have values added to it; to do that, we need to mill the product ourselves, sell the red oil, the palm oil, the palm cannel cake and other products that come with the fruit. That is the best practice in other places that help them make money from having such plantations,” he added.

He further called on government to expand the place by ensuring that the 3, 600 fallow land belonging to the company is utilised to increase productivity as it can employ a workforce of about 20, 000.

He explained that “Every year, the company constructs 32 Kilometre Fire Shelter Belts to keep fire away from flaming the plantation. Currently, the company employs the local residents for many of the jobs of maintaining the place to its current yielding capacity. If the needed turnarounds are carried out, it would increase the number of persons it needs to take it to optimal productivity.”

In his own reaction, the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Hon Edward Onoja, who was part of government entourage reminded the people that as part of Governor Bello’s five thematic areas that formed his blueprint for the development of the state, job creation is the number three and that the government is going to achieve it using three sectors including agriculture, mining and eco-tourism.

He bemoaned a situation where only 10% of the 4, 000 hectares of land allotted to the Alloma Oil Palm Plantation has been utilised, and stressed that the present government of Yahaya Bello is ready to make necessary resources available in view of the economic viability of the company.

Onoja, who promised that Governor Bello would not allow the place to suffer the same neglect it suffered under the previous administrations in the state, stressed that the Governor would take a huge interest in the project as it would go a long way in assisting the present administration in fulfilling its agenda for increased revenue generation, youth empowerment and job creation.

He therefore expressed the hope that once their report is submitted to Governor Yahaya Bello, the needed attention would be given the plantation so as to bring out the social and economic boost for the development of the state.

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KGSG to revamp its agro-allied company

Kogi State Government has expressed confidence that its agro-allied company in an Ofu Local Government village would be revamped for higher productivity.

The government through its Commissioner for Agriculture, Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba, made this known to Inside Story Saturday, while inspecting facilities at the company’s site in Alloma village.

The Commissioner, in an exclusive interview with our correspondence, lamented that the ten-year-old gigantic 4, 000 hectares Alloma Oil Palm Company Plantation is underutilised. He expressed the need to sink more resources towards ensuring that opportunities accruing from the agro-based complex are harnessed in order to boost economic development in the state.

He said if the place is properly maintained and maximised productively, it would go a long in boosting the agricultural industrial capacity of the state and improve its Internally Generated   Revenue.

According to him, the place needs a Milling Centre to add value to the fossils contained therein, stressing that it would increase productivity and add cash relevance to the crops.

He said of the 3,500 palm cannel trees on the plantation can improve the state’s economy, acknowledging that the necessity of developing the remaining 3, 600 hectares of land further with improved seedlings for rapid productivity.

“There is need for government to put in the required resources to harness the benefits that are locked up in terms of revenue and general economic development of the state. We definitely cannot continue to wait for the Federal Government to meet our developmental challenges. The place can also create employment for the youths of the area and help in the state’s contribution to the nation’s quest for food sufficiency,” he said.

Earlier in his address, the Acting General Manager of Kogi State Agro-Products and Allied Companies, Mr. Alex Olukayode highlighted the problems of the plantation to include the need to “prune, slash and fall the big tree,” and then add fertilisers to the crops for rapid yield.

He said an Oil Mill is also needed to increase productivity and halt the current practice where the oil palm fruits are harvested and sold to the local women which has little economic benefits to the state.

“The present situation needs to have values added to it; to do that, we need to mill the product ourselves, sell the red oil, the palm oil, the palm cannel cake and other products that come with the fruit. That is the best practice in other places that help them make money from having such plantations,” he added.

He further called on government to expand the place by ensuring that the 3, 600 fallow land belonging to the company is utilised to increase productivity as it can employ a workforce of about 20, 000.

He explained that “Every year, the company constructs 32 Kilometre Fire Shelter Belts to keep fire away from flaming the plantation. Currently, the company employs the local residents for many of the jobs of maintaining the place to its current yielding capacity. If the needed turnarounds are carried out, it would increase the number of persons it needs to take it to optimal productivity.”

In his own reaction, the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Hon Edward Onoja, who was part of government entourage reminded the people that as part of Governor Bello’s five thematic areas that formed his blueprint for the development of the state, job creation is the number three and that the government is going to achieve it using three sectors including agriculture, mining and eco-tourism.

He bemoaned a situation where only 10% of the 4, 000 hectares of land allotted to the Alloma Oil Palm Plantation has been utilised, and stressed that the present government of Yahaya Bello is ready to make necessary resources available in view of the economic viability of the company.

Onoja, who promised that Governor Bello would not allow the place to suffer the same neglect it suffered under the previous administrations in the state, stressed that the Governor would take a huge interest in the project as it would go a long way in assisting the present administration in fulfilling its agenda for increased revenue generation, youth empowerment and job creation.

He therefore expressed the hope that once their report is submitted to Governor Yahaya Bello, the needed attention would be given the plantation so as to bring out the social and economic boost for the development of the state.

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