The Consul-General to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Nigeria, Michel Deelen, has commended the management of Okomu Oil Palm Company PLC for its partnership with small-scale entrepreneurs in the oil palm sector.
The Netherlands diplomat who made the remarks when he visited Okomu, alongside top Dutch officials, Edo State Government officials, and members of IDH, a Netherland Government initiative involved in supporting small-scale farmers., to an interactive session with the smallholders, noted that the visit gave him the opportunity to assess the challenges confronting the smallholders.
Mr Deleen reiterated his government’s resolve to support agricultural companies in Nigeria with the aim of achieving the sustainability of the agricultural value chain.
Speaking with the smallholder farmers registered with Okomu Oil Palm Company PLC, the diplomat said his visit was to reach out to oil palm farmers to ensure that their farming activities were carried out devoid of deforestation.
He added that his tour of the company’s concession and his interactions with smallholder farmers had shown that the company’s activities had not contributed to deforestation, allegedly in Europe and Asia.
Mr Deelen said sustainable agriculture would spur the Dutch government, through the IDH, to start the implementation of phase two of its partnership with Okomu’s smallholders’ scheme by expanding the scope of its partnership, offering the farmers an opportunity to have a decent income, and also ensuring that their activities did not lead to deforestation.
“This will entail the inclusion of more farmers and the enlightenment of these farmers to go about their activities in a sustainable manner, as well as joining in the fight against deforestation.”. Deelen reiterated.
In his remarks, the IDH Country Director, Dr Eniola Fabusoro, said the initiative’s over-three-year partnership with Okomu Oil Palm Company PLC and the smallholders had been very successful based on the testimonies of the farmers.
This was just as he enthused that the feedback had necessitated that IDH go ahead with phase two of the project.
Dr Fabusoro said the management of Okomu had shown transparency in its dealings with the farmers through the transmission of knowledge, technological transfer, and several opportunities given to the farmers.
He noted that the Okomu smallholder farm model was one that could be replicated by other agricultural companies towards achieving a sustainable agricultural sector.
The Managing Director (MD), Okomu Oil Palm Company PLC, Dr. Graham Hefer, while appreciating the Consul-General for the visit, said the company was striving to ensure that all its activities were done in a sustainable way, hence obtaining the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 certifications.
Dr Hefer added that its partnership with the smallholder farmers within 100 kilometres of the company’s landscape was one that positively affected the lives of farmers, especially those of its neighbouring communities.
The position of MD was collaborated on by the company’s agriculture coordinator, Mr. Billy Ghansah, who made a presentation showing that the company currently has over 550 smallholder farmers and 12 cooperative societies across the Edo and Delta States.
Ghansah added that the projection was to achieve over 100,000 tonnes of Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFB) by 2031, adding that with the current partnership with various stakeholders, that could be achieved.
President of the Smallholder Farmers Association, Chief Johnson Oni, commended the management of Okomu and IDH for the smallholder scheme, saying that the farmers had greatly benefited from the scheme.
Chief Oni identified some of the benefits they were getting from the scheme, including a ready market for their products, training for its members, access to subsidised seedlings, and transparent pricing.
He pleaded for the continuation of the ongoing partnership with the farmers.
The visiting Dutch Consul-General was later taken on a guarded tour of the company’s concession, including the palm nursery and the High Conservation Value (HCV) areas.
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