Kwara distributes 14,180 tree seedlings to 255 schools
Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
As part of the Food Systems Transformation Pathways (FSTP) agenda of the federal government, the Kwara state government in collaboration with the Agro-Climate Resilience in Semi-Acrid Landscapes (ACReSAL) has flagged off distribution of 14,180 economic tree seedlings to 255 schools across the 16 local government areas of the state.
Speaking at the event in Ilorin on Monday, the state Commissioner for Planning and Economic Development and Chairman of the State Steering Committee for FSTP, Chief (Dr.) Mrs. Mary Ronke Arinde, said the project would have both educational and economic impacts on schools.
Arinde also disclosed that the beneficiaries include 80 primary schools, 170 secondary schools, and five tertiary institutions in the state, adding that the schools would receive cocoa, cashew, oil palm, and orange tree seedlings.
According to her, the distribution, attended by local government chairmen, school principals, and representatives of Heads of schools, underscored the importance of the initiative to stakeholders in the education and agricultural sectors.
“These orchards will not only teach students about crops and their products but also serve as research plantations for tertiary institutions beyond academics, and we give the local governments chairman a chance to pick two schools of their choice to benefit from the initiative”, she stated.
Dr. Arinde added that, in the long term, the initiative could become a source of revenue for schools, enabling them to invest in other agricultural ventures such as animal husbandry and fisheries.
She urged supervising MDAs, the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Teaching Service Commission, and Ministry of Tertiary Education to ensure proper monitoring and accountability through follow-up visits.
The commissioner commended Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq for his commitment to food security, and praised the ACReSAL team, led by Alhaji Aregbe Shamsudeen, for ensuring delivery of the seedlings.
The Kwara State Director of Planning, Alhaji Kayode Alimi, stressed the role of school gardens in promoting agricultural education and serving as a practical learning tool for students.
According to Alhaji Kayode, the initiative includes the distribution of gardening tools to fast-track agricultural teaching and the provision of seedlings to students, enabling them to start their own gardens under regular supervision.
“This effort will not only create an eco-friendly environment but also inspire students to develop a passion for agriculture, food security, and self-empowerment”, he noted.
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development in the state, Dr. Lawal Olalekan Olohungbebe, emphasised the need to preserve trees planted in schools, noting that they play an important role in protecting the learning environment.
He said that the initiative goes beyond aesthetics, adding that it is a way of safeguarding investments in education infrastructure.
Dr. Olohungbebe announced that the Ministry will set up a small committee to monitor the trees in schools and draw members from the Quality Assurance Bureau (QAB) and School Services, who would go round to inspect schools and their environment.
“On behalf of the Ministry of Education, I am promising that as soon as I leave this event, I’m not going back to the office. I’ll be putting a very small committee in place to monitor the trees”, he stated.
The event was flagged off with a detailed session on proper care and management of the seedlings to guarantee healthy growth and sustainability.