30th August, 2022
By Maureen Okon
Governor Kayode Fayemi has approved the establishment of a livestock farm for indigenes under the aegis of the Ekiti Diaspora Forum (EDF).
According to a statement by Femi Odere, a former Senior Special Assistant (Diaspora Affairs) to the Governor, Fayemi has given his “final nod“ for the setting up of a 250- hectare livestock farm at Irele Ekiti.
The first phase, according to Odere, will be the establishment of a cattle ranch.
The statement said the approval was another testament that Fayemi was not only a “promise keeper“ but a state chief executive whose “passion for the economic development of Ekiti was “sine qua non“.
It said the governor approved the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), known as EkitiKete Livestock Development Company Limited, to bring indigenes of the state who were in the diaspora into the development matrix.
`The initial funding over the three years for the first phase of the project is expected to be N1 billion.
“Also, with this final approval by the governor, the coast is now clear for the company to sign an MOU with Vietnam-Africa Economic Cooperation Alliance (VAECA) which is going to be the company’s technical partner after which work on the project will begin in earnest,” Odere said in the statement.
Apart from the governor, Odere also thanked the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Dr Olabode Adetoyi, for also believing in the project.
NAN