The International Fund for Agricultural Development-Value Chain Development Programme (IFAD-VCDP) has urged Ogun local government councils to institutionalise Operation and Maintenance (O&M) committees in their budgets to sustain programme infrastructure.
Mrs Abiola Sobukola, Acting Programme Coordinator, IFAD-VCDP, Ogun, made the call at a policy dialogue and stakeholders’ engagement forum on institutionalisation of O&M committees into LG budgets on Thursday in Abeokuta.
Sobukola said the call became necessary as the programme was gradually winding down and preparing to hand over its infrastructure to relevant stakeholders.
She urged local governments to make budgetary provisions for maintenance to ensure continued use and sustainability of facilities provided to farmers.
“The local governments will now take responsibility for maintaining the facilities for the continued use of farmers in their respective areas.
“We are encouraging local governments to set aside funds in their budgets for maintenance so that the infrastructure does not become moribund,” she said.
Sobukola said the O&M committees, when constituted, would comprise representatives of facility users, liaison officers, local government engineers and other relevant officials.
She also urged local governments to provide technical support to farmers, particularly in areas beyond their capacity.
Also speaking, Mrs Vera Onyeaka-Onyilo, IFAD-VCDP Knowledge Management Advisor, said the programme had impacted more than 13,200 rural actors across eight local government areas in Ogun since 2015.
She said rice yields increased from 1.5 metric tonnes to 3.1 metric tonnes, while cassava yields rose from 18 metric tonnes to 33 metric tonnes.
Onyeaka-Onyilo said the programme had provided processing and aggregation centres, feeder roads, bridges, culverts and solar-powered facilities, among others.
She expressed concern about sustaining the facilities after the programme’s exit and called for their integration into local government structures.
“Now, the challenge is, as the VCDP programme is winding down, how do we prevent these hard-won assets from deteriorating.
“How do we maintain and sustain them” she said
She called for specific budgetary provisions and the inclusion of local government engineers in the proposed committees to guarantee the sustainability of the infrastructure.
A participant, Mr Olukayode Alebiosu, Local Government Extension Officer, Obafemi Owode LGA, described the initiative as crucial to sustaining IFAD-VCDP infrastructure.
Alebiosu commended IFAD-VCDP for supporting farmers through the provision of inputs, infrastructure, capacity building and youth empowerment.
He explained that providing funds for maintenance in local government budgets would make the O&M initiative realistic and sustainable.
“Local governments already have departments of works headed by engineers who handle rehabilitation and maintenance of infrastructure.
“This is an amazing policy because we are talking about sustainability and maintenance.
“So, bringing the engineers into this programme is putting the right peg in the right hole because infrastructure maintenance is not new to them,” he said.
He added that the inclusion of local government engineers and Directors of Agriculture in the proposed committees would enhance the sustainability of the facilities.
Alebiosu urged local governments to include maintenance of VCDP infrastructure in their annual budgets to facilitate prompt repairs and rehabilitation.
He said such provision would enable local governments to access funds through appropriate budgetary codes for repairs and rehabilitation.
“We are taking this message home to our chairman that the sustainability of these infrastructures must be upheld and must be a continuous process,” he said.
He expressed confidence that institutionalising O&M committees would ensure continuity of VCDP interventions beyond the lifespan of the programme.
