I saw this yesterday and it got me thinking again. What exactly is the role of Agriculture Commissioners in our various states beyond bearing the title? To start with the basics, we often see national policy documents prepared by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development under the supposed supervision of the different Ministers of Agriculture. Has anyone seen a blueprint on Agriculture by any State Ministry of Agriculture? If it exists, how readily available is it? What then are the parameters for measuring the performances of these public officials? Agriculture and development in saner climes are data driven. We have done well in that area too in the past. How well are we doing in that regard now? The last time I saw a Village Listing Survey was at OGADEP in 2004. It contained a list of all the farming villages in Ogun State as compiled under the supervision of Dr Vaughan, when he was Director, M & E, sometimes in the 90s or so. It really assisted us in starting our work as Community Development Facilitators. By the time we got to the field, a number of the communities had gone extinct, but people were able to confirm they once existed. I hope such a beautiful list is still being regularly updated. Well, who knows whether the enumeration unit and the field enumerators still exist? What about the Zonal and Block Offices? Are they still habitable and operational? Field work was well aided in those days. I just hope this brand new Commissioner will make a difference in all ramifications and be the best among the current lot.
Idris Badiru Valid points here. Your insights remind me of my points while training some staff of Farmkonnect in Nigeria. It's really disheartening that we don't take data serious. Yet we want to solve big problems. We are using pencils where we supposed to use shovels. We are only good in developing fine policy documents and execution instruments without 'serious' and people of high integrity for execution.
Dear dear, commissioners are jẹun sókè politicians often without vision other than, you know, except when the particular ministry gets luck. How do you explain a lawyer as agric commissioner.
Bolu Owotomo, Sir, You undoubtedly will need the expertise of people like Idris Badiru if you must do beyond the title-bearing and hypocritical salute, you receive from sycophants, for being a cabinet member.
We need to go beyond the jamboree and do the actual work that has a direct impact in the lives of the people. It's been years since we have our own government ( democracy), how have we fared?
Very enlightening sir... Agriculture is indeed an all-inclusive endeavour!!!
This is spot-on, Sir!
Project Management | Monitoring and Evaluation | Agricultural Economist | Research Analyst
1yI appreciate your point Dr. Idris Badiru & Mutiu Iyanda, mMBA, ASM and I'd like to highlight the ongoing efforts of the Ogun State Economic Transformation Project (OGSTEP) in the state. In partnership with the IITA–CGIAR and the Ogun State Ministry of Agriculture, OGSTEP has launched the Ogun State Farmer Information Management System (OGFIMS), a pivotal initiative aimed at creating a comprehensive digital database for Ogun state's farmers. In the past months, enumerators have diligently undertaken the task of registering farmers and other key stake holders in the Agricultural Value-Chain across all local governments in the state, fortifying the agricultural database. Additionally, under the umbrella of OGSTEP, the Value-Chain Development Firms (VCDF) have successfully registered over 10,000 farmers, effectively organizing them into groups and clusters across all 4 agricultural zones in the state. I believe these achievements represent a significant milestone in the journey toward establishing a standardized and digital farmer database for Ogun State. It's a testament to the governments commitment to modernize and enhance the agricultural sector, promising both economic growth and prosperity for the state