… pledges support for oil palm production

The Ekiti State Government has called on farmers in the State to intensify efforts toward sustainable and environmentally friendly palm oil production.

The State Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Mr. Ebenezer Boluwade, made the call during a three-day training programme for smallholder farmers in Ado-Ekiti.

Mr. Boluwade reaffirmed the government’s commitment to supporting palm oil production through policies and legal frameworks that encourage the planting of palm trees and enhance processing capacity across the state.

He described sustainable palm oil production as key to boosting food security, job creation and economic growth.

The training programme which was sponsored by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), was organised in collaboration with the Ekiti Africa Sustainable Commodities Initiative and Propcom+ UK International Development has “Enhancing Stakeholders’ Knowledge on RSPO Standards to Facilitate Responsible Production, Environmental Safeguards, Sustainable Land Use Planning, and Supply Chain Traceability in Ekiti State,” as its theme .

In his remarks at the event, the State Project Coordinator of the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), Dr. Akinyemi Akinyugha, and the leader of the Propcom+ team, Mr. Abib Ibrahim, stressed the need for farmers to adopt practices that protect the environment.

They noted that the training would equip participants with modern skills while exposing them to partnership opportunities with national and international development agencies.

Also speaking, the State Chairman of the National Palm Production Association, Mr. Adebabo Oluwagbemigun, commended the initiative, describing it as timely and capable of increasing the state’s internally generated revenue.

Resource persons at the programme took participants through improved techniques and partnership models aimed at strengthening palm oil production in Ekiti State and beyond.

The workshop which was designed to deepen farmers’ understanding of global standards for sustainable palm oil production had the theme: “Enhancing Stakeholders’ Knowledge on RSPO Standards to Facilitate Responsible Production, Environmental Safeguards, Sustainable Land Use Planning, and Supply Chain Traceability in Ekiti State”