The Prince Dapo Abiodun-led administration is committed to opening rural roads and putting them in good shape to make life more meaningful for the rural dwellers, as well as enhancing transportation of agricultural produce from farmstead to the market, to further achieve food security and sustainability.

Commissioner for Rural Development, Mr. Jamiu Odetoogun, reaffirmed this in Abeokuta at a forum tagged: "Road Sector Reform Stakeholders Workshop"  organised by Rural Access Agricultural and Marketing Projects (RAAMP), saying “arrangements are in place to fund rural projects through the support of RAAMP the World Bank, and the French International Development Agency”.

Mr. Odetoogun revealed that upgrading of 125km, rehabilitating/backlog, maintenance of 200km, spot improvement of 450km, routine maintenance of 700km of rural roads with the construction of over 100m of cross drainage structure and development of five numbers of agro logistics center (rural market) would be carried out.   

He commended the effort of Governor Dapo Abiodun for the prompt release of counterpart funds for the execution of projects for the year 2022, lauding the support and supervisory roles of the Federal Project Management Unit of RAAMP and other stakeholders.

Mr. Odetoogun said, “the resolution of the forum will aid the smooth preparation of the proposed bill to the State House of Assembly for prompt passage”.

Speaking earlier, the Consultant on Road Sector Reforms Advisory Service, Mr. Maysam Abedin, stated that the workshop was a fallout of the stakeholders’ reports on road maps in Ogun State, carried out by his team early in the year, which would be an opportunity for an interactive discussion, consensus building and teamwork, suggesting that maintenance of roads should be yearly.

Also speaking, the State Project Coordinator, RAAMP, Engr. Muritala Adekunle stated that Ogun had been chosen as one of the four pilot States to benefit from the Rural Access Road Agency (RARA) and State Fund (SRF), to ensure that rural roads reform and implementation institutional capacity were strengthened.

He noted that the presence of the agency would champion the maintenance of rural roads in the State, as funding would also ensure sustainability and guarantee that the roads are continually in good condition after the expiration of the project.

Present at the workshop were representatives from the Ministries of Justice, Agriculture, Works and Infrastructure, Transportation, Local Government and Chieftaincy affairs, as well as the Local Government Works Department.