Experts canvasses increased awareness to promote agripreneurship development

Mr Isaac Duntoye, Executive Director, Tropical Farms, Otun-Ekiti, Moba Local Government Area of Ekiti state, has identified inadequate awareness as hindering agripreneurship development in the country.

Duntoye, a crop scientist, who made the assertion on Sunday, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Otun-Ekiti, Ekiti, said most farmers, especially at the grassroots, were not well-informed of the benefits of self-employment and job creation in agricultural practices.

According to him, most local farmers presently lacked the necessary data and skills needed to upgrade, expand and improve on their productivity and yields.

He said such development was hampering government’s efforts at diversifying the nation’s economy through agripreneurship.

“Potential farmers do not have the consciousness that services can be provided to improve their farming status.

“As African farming is subsistent in nature, most farmers cannot venture into investments that require large initial capital base.

“They don’t have adequate knowledge of many scientific researches and breakthroughs on improving their productivity and income.

“This is also compounded by inadequate food production technologies and linkages to markets,” Duntoye, a soya beans specialist, said.

He suggested the building of entrepreneurship skills of the youths in agribusiness, for inclusive growth and development of the agricultural sector.

Duntoye also expressed the need to make agripreneurship as a course more attractive to female students in various tertiary institutions with a view to develop the sector.

“Majority still believe that agriculture remains the exclusive preserve of the menfolk and such notion is contributing to the setback in promoting the sector.

“There is the need to promote agriculture as a business through agripreneurship, for our students to embrace it both as a business and vocation.

“This is necessary since agriculture has the potential to create jobs, improve wealth, conquer hunger and poverty across the country,” he said.