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Food Security: Ekiti set up storage facilities for bumper harvest
The Ekiti State government has set up storage facilities in different parts of the state, with the sole aim of buying farm produce from farmers during harvest season and storing them for release during period of scarcity.
This ccomes with a move to ensuring food sufficiency and availability in the state.
The State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, who on Monday led some officials on inspection of one of the storage facilities for agricultural produce in Ado- Ekiti, said building the storage facilities is one of the government’s plans to avert the food scarcity that was experienced in the state last year.
Governor Oyebanji said government’s immediate focus is to address food shortage, reduce post-harvest losses and ensure food sufficiency all year round across the state.
Speaking with Journalists shortly after the inspection, Governor Oyebanji who was accompanied on the inspection by his Chief of Staff, Mr Niyi Adebayo, Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Mr Boluwade Ebenezer, Commissioner for Trade, investment and cooperatives, Mrs Tayo Adeola, said the initiative was in line with the directive of President Bola Tinubu to the State Governors to prioritize food security as critical step in combating hunger across the country.
The Governor, explained that the state cultivated over 6,000 hectares of farmland in 2024, adding that the warehouse for storing food crops was a major challenge, hence the decision of his administration to provide storage facilities this year.
The facilities, according the Governor would help in regulating prices of food items in the eventuality of food scarcity.
While expressing his delight that a large chunk of the farm produce were bought from young farmers under the Bring Back Youth in Agriculture programme , the Governor assured that his administration remains committed to alleviating hunger and achieving food security in the state.
“We promised Ekiti State good governance and like you said we have been trying to work that talk. The President directed that each state should embark on strategy of food security and in Ekiti State in the last one year, we have started with phase one of a very deliberate attempt to ensure that we prow ourselves out of hunger, last year we cumulatively cultivated over 6,000 hectares of land in the state, all planted.
“Going forward, we want to ensure that, those crops that we buy from the youth, store them there and we will release to the market when there is increase in prices of food so that we can moderate prices”. The Governor stated .
In his own remarks, the Commissioner for Agriculture and food security, Mr Ebenezer Boluwade said that the goal is not only to tackle hunger but to also create opportunities for youth in agriculture.
While explaining that the initiative would ensure steady food supply throughout the year, Mr Boluwade said government would encourage farmers, particularly the youths in agriculture to increase production, knowing that their produce would not go to waste and government is willing and ready to buy from them.
In a somber development for Nigeria’s journalism community, Yakubu Mohammed, a co-founder of the iconic Newswatch magazine and its former deputy chief executive officer, has died at the age of 75.
Mohammed’s passing, announced recently, follows closely on the heels of the death of his longtime colleague and fellow co-founder, Dan Agbese, who succumbed to a prolonged illness on November 17, 2025, at age 81.
This marks yet another significant loss among the pioneering generation that launched Newswatch in 1984, revolutionizing investigative journalism in Nigeria.
Alongside Dan Agbese, Ray Ekpu, and the late Dele Giwa (who was tragically assassinated via a parcel bomb in 1986), Mohammed helped establish Newswatch as a trailblazing weekly newsmagazine known for its bold, fearless reporting and commitment to truth during a turbulent era in Nigerian history.
Reports indicate that Mohammed had been battling an undisclosed ailment before his death. Just months prior, in October 2025, he released his memoir, Beyond Expectations, which provides deep insights into the magazine’s founding, its challenges, and its enduring impact on Nigerian media.
The deaths of Agbese and now Mohammed represent profound blows to the legacy of Newswatch, which set new standards for ethical, investigative, and interpretative journalism in the country.
Tributes are expected to pour in from media practitioners, political leaders, and the public as the nation mourns another pillar of its press freedom movement. May his soul rest in perfect peace.
News
U.S. delivers ‘critical military assets’ to battle terrorists, bandits
Nigeria’s Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, visited the U.S. to quicken the process for the supply of 12 AH-1Z fighter jets by Bell Textron of California.AH-1Z, a modern attack helicopter, is equipped with advanced sensors and precision-guided weapons with night-fighting capabilities.
The US Africa Command (AFRICOM), has confirmed the delivery of critical military supplies to Nigeria to support the ongoing security operations against terrorists and other non-state actors.
“This delivery supports Nigeria’s ongoing operations and emphasises our shared security partnership,” said AFRICOM on its official X account yesterday.
AFRICOM, however, did not name the “critical military” tools.
Nigeria’s Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, visited the U.S. to quicken the process for the supply of 12 AH-1Z fighter jets by Bell Textron of California.AH-1Z, a modern attack helicopter, is equipped with advanced sensors and precision-guided weapons with night-fighting capabilities.
The supply of the critical military tools came after Washington launched deadly strikes on terrorists in the Northwest on December 24.
News
World Bank projects Nigeria’s urban population to reach 264m by 2050
According to the report entitled ‘Multi-sector analytical review and pathway to transformation’, Nigeria’s urban population has grown exponentially over the last 65 years – from just under seven million in 1960 to over 128 million in 2024, with nearly half the urban population living in slums.
• Lagos Business District
The World Bank says that people living in Nigerian cities will over the next 25 years reach 264 million from the current 140.3 million people.
The Bank made the projection in its Global Economic Prospects report, released yesterday, also forecasts that the Nigerian economy will grow by 4.4 percent in 2026 and maintain that pace in 2027.
In the report, Nigeria is expected to be the third most populous country in the world, after China and India
According to the report entitled ‘Multi-sector analytical review and pathway to transformation’, Nigeria’s urban population has grown exponentially over the last 65 years – from just under seven million in 1960 to over 128 million in 2024, with nearly half the urban population living in slums.
It is projected that 70 percent of the population will live in urban areas by 2050, with cities at the centre of the country’s economic future.
BREAKING: Another Newswatch Magazine Co-Founder Passes Away – Yakubu Mohammed Dies at 75
U.S. delivers ‘critical military assets’ to battle terrorists, bandits
World Bank projects Nigeria’s urban population to reach 264m by 2050
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