The World Bank has said Ekiti would soon join the list of states that will benefit from the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP) in year 2020.
The World Bank Team Leader, Engr. Fahard Ahmed, made this disclosure in Ado Ekiti on Saturday when the World Bank team and the National office of RAAMP paid a visit.
Ahmed said with the existing robust relationship between the World Bank and Governor Kayode Fayemi, the state was in a good position to join the project by January 2020.
He added that his team was impressed with the magnificent settings of the Ekiti RAAMP office and the readiness of its staff to hit the ground running once the project agreement and all other modalities were completed between the World Bank and Ekiti State.
“Ekiti State was added to the list of other 22 states on the project because Fayemi made a special request to the World Bank and the request was expressly accepted”.
Fayemi appreciated the World Bank for accepting to include Ekiti State on the project.
Fayemi, represented by the Senior Special Adviser on Road Transport and Infrastructure and the State Project Coordinator of RAAMP, Hon. Sunday Adunmo, revealed that the World Bank initiative when it begins would connect and upgrade about 200 Kms of Ekiti rural roads to the urban centres and market places across the state in its first phase.
According to Adunmo, the project would also provide easy transportation of farm produce to various markets in the state, thereby removing the pain and agony the rural farmers faced on a yearly basis.
“The initiative will also enable us to provide basic amenities at some abandoned farm settlements thereby encouraging our farmers in those areas to focus on their agricultural activities and better their living conditions,” Mr. Adunmo said.
On the World Bank team are Engr. Fahard Ahmed, World Bank RAAMP Task Team Leader (TTL); Mr. Shailendra Jha, ILO Representative, Engr. Aminu Mohammed, Representing the RAAMP National Coordinator and Mariam Chinda, National Project Secretary.