By Jubril Bada

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The Ondo State Government has inaugurated the State Project Management Committee and Multi-stakeholders’ platform for the FAO and GEF-funded project: the Food System, Land Use, and Restoration Impact Programme in the Niger Delta.

This Committee is tasked with overseeing the implementation of projects aimed at enhancing food security, promoting sustainable land use, and improving the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in the state.

The focus will be on cocoa, palm oil, and forestry to bolster the state’s economy.

As one of the selected states in the Niger Delta region, Ondo State collaborates with the Federal Government through the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Environment, and the National Project Management Unit of the FAO Global Environment Facility (GEF).

The goal is to promote sustainable food systems and integrated landscape management.

The project will be implemented in eight local government areas: Akure South, Idanre, Ondo West, Ile-Oluji/Okeigbo, Owo, Odigbo, Okitipupa, and Irele.

The State Commissioner for Agriculture and Forestry, Mr Olayato Aribo inaugurated the committee.

Represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mrs. Foluke Tunde-Daramola, Aribo expressed gratitude to the FAO and the Federal Government for including Ondo State in the FAO GEF-7 Food Systems, Land Use, and Restoration (FOLUR) pilot programme.

The programme aims to transform cocoa and oil palm production systems and landscapes in the Niger Delta towards sustainability and resilience.

This will be achieved through integrated landscape management, sustainable and inclusive value chains for cocoa and oil palm, conservation and restoration of degraded forests, and effective knowledge management and monitoring.

In her speech, Mrs Tunde-Daramola highlighted the ministry’s commitment to partnering with the project team and other stakeholders to promote sustainable cocoa and oil palm value chains.

Prof. Adebayo Shittu, the Chief Technical Advisor, noted that Ondo State will serve as the project headquarters for the participating states, including Cross River State.

Dr. Abel Odeyemi, the State Project Coordinator, pledged his team’s commitment to achieving the project’s objectives their lives.”