A 20-hectare land cultivated with hybrid cassava stem in Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State, have been handed over to 50 cassava farmers in the State. The plantation, a pilot project initiative of the Ministry of Rural Development under its Rural Development Integrated Programme was geared towards assisting the farmers reduce the man-hour spent during manual ploughing and planting, as the stems were planted mechanically. Handing over the plantation to beneficiaries, Special Adviser to the Governor on Rural Development, Mrs. Busola Ogunyemi disclosed that the hybrid cassava sourced in by a Kenya based organisation, the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF), was capable of producing 30 tonnes per hectare instead of the 15 tonnes produced by conventional method. The project, according to her would give the farmers a new lease of life as they could re-plant the stems next season to reap more, make more money and ultimately, help improve their standard of living. “The cassava was planted by a planter for the farmers free of charge and we believe that the harvest would be bountiful and they will be able to cater for themselves and their children”, Ogunyemi noted. She affirmed that after harvesting, government would provide buyers, urging the farmers to take good care of their portion to prevent being taken over by weeds Speaking in the same vein, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mrs. Olayinka Kukoyi explained that the scheme was part of the rebuilding agenda of the State government to enhance the living condition of the rural farmers and enable them contribute meaningfully to expanding the economic potentials of the State. “This scheme is geared towards reducing the hard labour that goes with ploughing and planting of cassava stems and would go a long way in yielding more harvest for the farmers”. In his remarks, one of the beneficiaries, Mr. Oladele MacDaniels, who is also the Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) in the council area expressed gratitude to the State Government for bringing the pilot Scheme to the council area. MacDaniels pointed out that the project would boost the production capacity of the farmers, promising that his members would take care of the portions allocated to them. It will be recalled that in a similar step, the Ministry of Agriculture had earlier opened a 50-hectare cassava multiplication plantation in Ibiade, Ogun Waterside Local Government Area of the State.