The Oyo State Government on Wednesday supported 1,000 pig farmers in the state with two bags of 50 kilogrammes of feeds and two bottles of disinfectant each.

The distribution of the feeds and disinfectants at Ajaawa in the Ogo-Oluwa Local Government Area of the state kick-started the third phase of the provision of agricultural inputs to farmers.

The project was under the Sustainable Action for Economic Recovery initiative.

The SAfER is an initiative of the state government to cushion the effect of current economic hardship on residents of the state.

The state Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, declared the third phase of the programme open at the local government secretariat in Ajaawa.

Mr Olaleye, in his remarks, said the SAfER initiative was targeting farmers in the crop, poultry, fishery and livestock sectors, with the aim of supporting those on the small and medium scale.

“The essence is to relieve them of the current economic hardship,” he said.

In addition to the feeds distribution, the commissioner said that 250,000 cattle, goats and sheep would also be vaccinated across the state during the third phase of the programme

He added that 1,000 sheep and goat farmers across the state would equally soon receive two bags of 50kg wheat offal each.

The commissioner recalled that some poultry and fishery farmers in the state had benefited in the first and second phases of the inputs distribution exercise.

Mr Olaleye who is also the chairman, SAfER Food Security Sub-Committee, said they would soon proceed to the next stage.

He said, “That is the stage of giving seed, cassava, cottons, herbicides and knapsack sprayers to crop farmers across the state.”

He explained that the efforts of government to support the farmers were aimed at reducing the cost of food in the state

The commissioner urged farmers to show gratitude to the government by reflecting the support they received in the pricing of farm products in the coming months.

In his address, the Chairman, Piggery Farmers Association, Tope Oye-Alamu, expressed gratitude to the state government for the inclusion of pig farmers as beneficiaries of the state government initiative.

Mr Oye-Alamu said members of the association would continue to support the government’s efforts at improving the economy of the state.

(NAN)