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The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate in Enugu, Frank Nweke Jr, has pledged to establish Enugu Strategic Food Reserve (ESFR) to end food shortage in the state if elected in 2023.
This is contained in a statement issued by his Media Office on Saturday in Enugu.
He said the initiative was aimed at providing succour to low-income earners and vulnerable communities with one centre of ESFR in each of the senatorial zone.
According him, the idea is to ensure that nobody goes hungry, adding that they will have a robust data-driven plan to place families on a food distribution program for specific durations.
“The Enugu Strategic Food Reserve (ESFR) will not be a purely charitable venture. It will be designed as a social enterprise to serve more than one purpose.
“Through the ESFR, we will provide a ready market for thousands of farmers as we purchase and store farm produce from them.
“It will also serve as a needed storage facility to salvage a portion of the estimated 40 per cent of agricultural produce lost due to the unavailability of good storage facilities.
The governorship candidate further said his administration would work with the Agricultural Innovation Centers that would be set up across the six Agricultural zones.
He added also that they would leverage on agricultural cooperatives that would ensure profitability to the farmers through improved farm inputs.
“During the rainy and festive seasons that are notorious for price hikes, we will use the ESFR to moderate food prices by strategically releasing stored grains and other key food items into the market.
“We will sell them at affordable rates to indigent communities and it will be done bearing in mind the need for profitability for traders as well.
“The creation of a food reserve that is safe and has the capacity to serve our goals will require the involvement of experts, good management and sizeable funding,” Nweke said.
Nweke said the idea is achievable with clarity of purpose, transparency, the right stakeholder engagement and the right contractors in place.
He explained that they will begin the process by working with local leaders within selected communities and engaging the Research and Development Institutes, leveraging the academic advantage they had in the state.
Nweke said: “Our aim to pursue a holistic economic strategy to significantly improve the quality of life of residents and will always look for innovative ways to achieve this goal, either in the short term or for the long haul.
“This is why I am running to become the governor because I understand in clear terms that public resources are meant to improve the lives of our people, and not for a few private pockets,” he said.
He added that the economic situation and its impact in the state has further highlighted the need for a multi-sectoral food security strategy with coordinated actions across various sectors from security to agriculture, education, health and nutrition, infrastructure, and social services.
