CITIZENS COMPASS– The Governor of Ondo State, Hon. Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa, has described agriculture as the backbone of the state’s economy, highlighting its vital role in sustaining citizens’ livelihoods and driving economic growth.
He made this assertion during the groundbreaking ceremony of the 3.5km Ebute Ipare-oke rural road project in Ilaje local government area, Ondo southern senatorial district, on Monday.
This is coming just as the state government, through the Ministry of Infrastructure, has embarked on massive rehabilitation of roads across the three senatorial districts of the State.
Speaking at the event, Governor Aiyedatiwa highlighted his administration’s deliberate focus on transforming rural areas across Ondo State through infrastructure projects, especially road construction and rehabilitation.
The Governor said: “Our administration has been making deliberate efforts to emplace several life-changing programmes and projects geared towards improving the livelihood and living standard of the rural dwellers and teeming farming population in our dear State through the construction and reconstruction of several bad roads. These we are doing for the rural communities, moreso that agriculture remains the backbone of the economy of Ondo State.”
Governor Aiyedatiwa noted the importance of the rural road project in ensuring the steady supply of food from farms to urban areas, while also raising the socioeconomic status of rural residents.
He stated that the groundbreaking of rural road projects has also taken place in Oda and Idanre towns within the Central Senatorial District, as well as in Molege, Owo, in the Northern Senatorial District, where contractors handling the projects simultaneously have intensifed work.
He attributed the success of these projects to the state’s timely payment of counterpart funds for the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a collaboration with the World Bank and the French Development Agency.
The Governor assured the residents of Ilaje that the new road would help address the economic gap between rural and urban areas by facilitating smoother transportation and creating opportunities for local farmers.
In addition, Governor Aiyedatiwa announced the establishment of nine Agro-Logistics Centers across the three senatorial districts of the state, with Ebute Ipare to Oke-Ipare selected as one of the beneficiaries.
In his opening remarks, the Administrative Secretary of the Directorate of Rural & Community Development and Chairman of the State Project Monitoring Committee of RAAMP, Mr. Wole Akinkuotu, reiterated the Aiyedatiwa administration’s proactive stance in participating in RAAMP.
He cited Governor Aiyedatiwa’s commitment and the desire to reshape perceptions surrounding rural accessibility, adding that the project is in line with the governor’s promise to the people of Ondo State to ease the hardships faced by rural communities.
Also, in his keynote address, the Director General of Ondo RAAMP, Adeniyi Adelabu, thanked the Governor for honouring his promise. He recounted several occasions where the Governor expressed his commitment to establishing road links between rural areas and urban centers.
Adelabu commended the Governor for treating the project with urgency as the primary challenge in rural areas is poor road infrastructure, which leads to farm produce being abandoned on the farms.
