Kogi Cooperative Federation Expresses Readiness to Collaborate with State Government to Ensure Food Security »

…Woo Investors To Harness State’s Abundant Mineral Resources, Others

The Kogi State chapter of the Cooperative Federation of Nigeria has assured of its readiness to partner with the state government to ensure it achieves its set goals in the area of securing food for citizens.

The President of the cooperative, Mohammed Ogrima, gave the assurance during their weekly executive council meeting held on Wednesday, 8th May 2024 at their office in Lokoja.

According to him, one of the key objectives of the agency, which is supported by the United Nations (UN) and supervised by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Ministry of Agriculture respectively, aims to empower the less privileged in society through agriculture, grants, and others.

Ogirima, who explained that the state had enormous natural resources, added that with the thirty-nine (39) deposits of abundant mineral resources, the cooperative could woo foreign partners that could transform the fortune of Kogi State.

“We want to contribute our quota. We are willing to woo investors and partner with the present administration under the leadership of Governor Ododo Amhed Usman who is doing his best to ensure our mineral resources in Kogi State are no longer mined illegally.”

The President cited states like Lagos, Ibadan, and others, noting that they are doing great exploits in attracting development to their communities through the cooperative, saying that the same could be replicated if the agency is given the necessary support to function by the state government.

Ogirima also used the avenue to congratulate Governor Ododo Ahmed Usman on the successful completion of his first 100 days in office.

In a related development, the Vice President of the Cooperative, Hanatu Odiba, appealed to the state government to support more women who are hard-working and resolute in ensuring food on the table.

Odiba, who also spoke extensively on an ongoing data capturing of some women farmers at their premises by an agency called Liberty Micro Hub International, added that the effort would see to supplying the farmers with inputs and other necessary support to enable them to begin to do agriculture as a business, beyond putting food on the table.

Additionally, the Programme Manager of Liberty Hub International, Isah Usman, explained that the agency, which is a foreign-based company, exists to support farmers by areas of granting them access to funds, mentoring, and providing the farmers with market opportunities to sell their produce.

They expressed optimism that no genuine farmers will suffer setbacks again if the cooperative is given the responsibility to coordinate all federal and state governments’ grants meant for farmers in the state.

The President of the State Cooperative Federation of Nigeria equally appealed to the government for the renovation of offices allocated to them and asked for more office spaces to meet up with the standard of operation as applicable in other states.