16/01/2012 (Leadership Newspapers) - Mr Kenneth Okpara, the Delta Commissioner for Economic Planning, says the state government will restructure its agricultural programmes to boost food production and create employment for youths.

Okpara, said in Asaba that the revamping would begin with the provision of adequate funds and facilities such as tractors to farmers.

He said the government would also invest in the production of some critical crops, including cassava, palm oil and rice.

To ensure its sustainability, Okpara said the government had paid all outstanding counterpart funds to all agriculture-support programmes operating in the state.

“It is our conviction that with agriculture we can build the state without oil.

“We have realised that most farmers in the state are into cassava production and we have decided to provide funds and other support measures that they require.

“Part of the support is that we are increasing our fleet of tractors and other facilities, and these will be made available to the farmers to aid their activities.

“We are also returning to oil palm production, which used to be a staple of the state.”

The commissioner said the government was going into full-scale rice production “because we think there are communities that can grow rice in abundance when you give them the funding and other incentives”.

He, however, gave assurance that other areas of agriculture would not be relegated, saying that the government would sustain the momentum in all aspects of production in the sector.

Okpara announced that from now, the state government would relate directly with the farmers ``and not extend facilities to them through middlemen.

“We intend to change all that to ensure that the support gets to the rural farmers.”

The commissioner also announced that the government would establish a fertiliser production factory at the Koko Free Trade Zone (FTZ).

He said that an Indian firm had indicated interest in the venture and expressed optimism that it would be a huge success.

According to him, the factory will take care of about 95 per cent of the consumption of fertiliser in the country which, according to him, is currently being imported.

The factory, Okpara further said, would have the capacity to produce adequate fertiliser for local consumption and export, adding that the Koko FTZ, the Warri Industrial Park and the Asaba ICT Park were on the economic priority of the administration.

He added that the state, in partnership with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company, would build a gas plant to feed the fertiliser factory.