The Ogun State Government has empowered over 40,000 farmers, provided 236 senior secondary schools with smart classrooms, and renovated all eight technical colleges across the state under the Ogun State Economic Transformation Project, sponsored by the World Bank.

The state government said the World Bank-sponsored project, which began in 2020, has significantly revitalised critical aspects of the economy, positively impacting the state’s development and the prosperity of its residents.

This was disclosed on Tuesday during the OGSTEP Seventh Implementation Mission meeting held with the World Bank technical committee in Abeokuta, the state capital.

The Chairman of the OGSTEP Project Committee and Commissioner for Finance, Dapo Okubadejo, stated that the World Bank-assisted project was primarily established to improve the livelihoods of citizens and transform the state’s economic outlook.

Okubadejo, represented by the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Olaolu Olabimtan, stressed that in the area of education, the state has implemented Dual Technical Training, where students combine theoretical learning with hands-on industrial practical training.

The Commissioner for Education, Abayomi Arigbabu, who leads the education sector of the project, revealed that the initiative has also awarded scholarships to girls to encourage their enrollment in technical colleges.

Arigbabu said, “We have established the Ogun State Fund (OSF) to support individuals outside the formal school system by training and empowering youths with start-up kits. We have empowered science teachers with PSI/PMI methodologies, laptops, and training.

“We have also equipped laboratories in 22 flagship schools and installed smart classroom equipment in 236 schools to enhance the teaching of science and robotics.

“We are reviewing and rejuvenating the curriculum to improve student performance, upscaling the digital platform for education, creating a robust database, and enhancing planning capabilities to deliver more qualitative education.”

The Commissioner for Agriculture, Bolu Owotomo, who leads the agriculture sector of the project, noted that the World Bank initiative has significantly supported farmers and boosted food production capacity in the state.

Owotomo said farmers across the eight farm settlements have been provided with processing facilities and warehouses to reduce post-harvest losses, while some of these settlements are also being rehabilitated to make them more comfortable and habitable.

“The OGSTEP programme has helped us establish the Ogun Farmers Information Management System, under which we have registered 166,000 value chain players. From this database, we identified 40,000 farmers who have been supported under the project, including about 12,000 cassava farmers and 3,400 aquaculture farmers, among others.”

Earlier in her presentation, the Project Coordinator, Mosunmola Owo-Odunsi, attributed the project’s success so far to the state government’s commitment to repositioning the economy and elevating Ogun State to a higher pedestal.

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