The Kaduna State Coordinator of the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project, Zubairu Abubakar, said the state government has demonstrated its commitment to improving the lives of rural dwellers.

RAAMP is a third-generation rural access project supported by the International Development Association, a subsidiary of the World Bank, and the French Development Agency.

Kaduna State was selected in June 2022 by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to participate in the project.

The “Government’s Rural Travel and Transport Policy (RTTP)” will serve as the framework for the RAAMP, which became effective in the state on August 31, 2022. Currently, 19 states in the federation are involved in this programme.

The RTTP is a policy adopted by the federal government in 2006 with the objective of developing an adequate, safe, environmentally sound, and economically efficient rural travel and transport system in the country.

Addressing a press briefing on Wednesday in Kaduna, Mr Abubakar said the significance of a robust and well-connected rural road network could not be overstated.

According to him, rural roads form the bedrock of inclusive development and economic growth, adding that they were the effective means of realising food sufficiency and security across the state.

He explained that most urban centres derived their supply of food from farms that were located in rural communities.

The coordinator disclosed that nine ongoing RAAMP projects were currently on out of the 23 LGAs.

Mr Abubakar added that two were completed and inaugurated during Governor Uba Sani’s celebration of his first anniversary in office.

The coordinator said the second phase of the project, which would commence soon, would cover the rest of the LGAs.

He, therefore, said that the main objective of RAAMP was to improve rural roads and trade to bolster food production.

He said, “The primary objective of RAAMP is to improve rural roads and trading infrastructure to boost food production. Therefore, the successful implementation of this project can go a long way towards guaranteeing food sufficiency and security across the state and the country in general.’’

Mr Abubakar said the RAAMP project would include: Agro Logistics Centres which are market-hubs.

They have been prioritised for transformation to ultra-modern standards at various locations across the state in the rural communities to empower and enhance the livelihoods of the people.

Speaking further, Mr Abubakar explained that the Federal Project Management Unit was overseeing the project.

This is being done on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, while the respective state
governments of the participating states would implement it.

He said, “The FPMU is responsible for the overall coordination of the project and providing technical support to participating states. It will be responsible for the overall due diligence of all documents and reports submitted by the SPIUs.’’

He, therefore, said the project development objective of the RAAMP is to improve rural access and agricultural marketing in participating states.

It is also to strengthen the financing and institutional base for effective development, maintenance and management of the
rural road network.

Only states that have established and operationalised the ‘Rural Access Road Agency’ and ‘State Road Fund’ with the required standing on counterpart funds were eligible to access the scale-up funds.

(NAN)