By DAUD  OLATUNJI, Abeokuta

The OgunGovt State  government has urged farmers in the state to register  for Growth Enhancement Support (GES) Scheme of the Federal Government  in order to partake from its immense benefits.

The government which which said  the scheme was capable of enhancing farmers’ productivity, income and quality of life , added  that  the registered  farmers could  have access to inputs such as seedlings and fertilizer at subsidized rates.

State Commissioner for Agriculture, Mrs. Ronke Sokefun  stated this during the  flag off  of  the    2014 edition of the scheme at the Eweje Farm Institute in Odeda Local Government area of the State.
She urged registered farmers who had benefited from the scheme in the past but had not done the needful to do so , saying that there would be priority crops  under the 2014,  maize and rice.

According to her, the 2014 edition in the state is being flagged off in the second quarter of the year to enable as many farmers as possible to  enjoy maximally from inherent benefits.

“This year’s commodity roll-out will be executed concurrently by starting with the generic, which involves maize or rice seed with fertilizer within a period of six-eight weeks while other commodity roll-out will last for two weeks each in a quick succession” she said.

Meanwhile , the   State Director for the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Muyiwa Akinsola has  recalled that the  GES scheme was introduced in 2011 to transform small scale farmers from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture.