FOOD SECURITY: MINISTER LAUDS DANGOTE CEMENT OVER FARMERS’ EMPOWERMENT

..As Ibese Plant donates farming inputs to host neighborhood farmers

Minister of Strong Mineral Growth, Mr. Dele Alake has lauded the administration of Dangote Cement, Ibese for its contributions to the event of its host communities saying its many social investments have succeeded in fostering financial growth and social cohesion within the communities.

The Minister who spoke by the Mines and Surroundings Compliance Officer for the South West within the Ministry, Mr. Mathew Ochimana throughout the handover of farm inputs to Ibese Host Communities’ Farmers on the event of the 2025 Farmers Empowerment Programme stated the Cement Firm has by its Company Social Accountability such because the empowerment programmes, stimulated native economies, created jobs, help native companies and enhanced neighborhood infrastructure.

Mr. Ochimana urged the farmers to make the perfect use of the farm inputs to spice up meals manufacturing and warned them to keep away from the temptation to promote them as doing so would defeat the essence of giving them the gadgets and would additionally run counter-productive to efforts at boosting meals manufacturing throughout the communities.

Welcoming the farmers earlier, the Dangote Cement, Ibese Plant Director, Ayyagari Subbaraidu, reiterated the corporate’s dedication to empowering the farmers as a essential phase of the inhabitants with farming inputs help with a purpose to increase meals manufacturing.

Stated he; “We offer trendy farm inputs to assist farmers improve their productiveness, enabling them to constantly domesticate each subsistence and money crops at business scale. These inputs are donated to help higher yields and supply a extra trendy, environment friendly farming expertise.”

Apart from the empowerment programme for farmers themed “Planting to Revenue: Good Agricultural Practices for Cassava and Maize”, the Plant Director stated Dangote Cement is concentrated on creating optimistic impacts inside its host communities by prioritising well being, high quality training, empowerment, and the supply of essential infrastructure to drive socio-economic growth.

Subbaraidu famous that “with the help of our stakeholders, a few of whom are additionally right here, we’ve got achieved exceptional milestones, demonstrating that each limestone mined and each bag of cement manufactured comes with proportionate social worth addition and help to the host communities.

“In the middle of implementing the present Group Growth Settlement signed in 2022, 240 farmers throughout our host communities have been empowered by coaching, farm inputs, and instruments, contributing to the cultivation of over 600 acres of farmland and considerably boosting the native financial system.”

To cap Dangote Cement’s dedication to bettering the effectiveness and effectivity of the farmers for enhanced meals safety, and elevated income throughout the agricultural worth chain, Subbaraidu stated that every of the beneficiaries will go residence: with 3 baggage of 50kg NPK fertilizer; 2 baggage Urea fertilizer; 3 litres of Drive-Up herbicide; 1 raincoat and 1 pair of rain boots.

“To all our neighborhood stakeholders, we are saying a giant thanks in your invaluable collaboration in creating an enabling setting for our enterprise to thrive. Certainly, it takes sturdy partnerships between the Plant and the communities to attain socio-economic progress,” the Plant Director stated.

Additionally talking, the Chairman of Yewa South Native Authorities, Olusola Akinbode, counseled Dangote Cement for all the time rising to the event and he expressed satisfaction with the well timed intervention and dedication of the corporate to neighborhood growth.

He identified that the farmers’ empowerment programme is in tandem with the initiative of the Ogun State governor, Dapo Abiodun’s drive to make sure meals safety within the state. “Certainly one of our targets is to make sure meals sufficiency within the state; we did our personal farmers’ empowerment in June and we distributed 11,000 money crops, we’re promising to up the quantity to a minimum of 60,000 in 2026.

“Think about if we’ve got this and Dangote is supporting us with fertiliser, and different farm instruments, very quickly, Yewa will change into a meals basket to others.”

In his comment, the Chairman of Group Joint Consultative Committee (CJCC) Dayo Ogunyinka, expessed satisfaction that the programme in its fourth version has been very impactful describing it as an ideal intervention in the direction of meals safety and financial development. He thanked the Dangote Cement for reaching out to the grassroot whom he described because the centre of neighborhood growth.

One of many farmer beneficiaries, Iyabo Akintan from Ijako Orile host Group appreciated the corporate for all the time coming by for native farmers. She acknowledged that “This can deliver upliftment and a greater farming expertise with beneficial properties to the society.”

One other beneficiary, Olaleye Adekunle, described the gesture as “soothing and ethical boosting” for farmers. “With the supply of fertilisers and different farm instruments, working throughout rain and shine is now a risk and we’re actually grateful that Dangote Cement, Ibese, has our curiosity at coronary heart.”

The beneficiaries had been later taken by a session to coach them on find out how to make the perfect use of the inputs for optimum farm yields