Community in Ogbomoso, Fapote, to benefit FG's ₦80b intervention - SWDC' rural transformation prog

Community in Ogbomoso, Fapote, to benefit FG’s ₦80b intervention – SWDC’ rural transformation prog

Yinka OGUNLANA

Fapote in Oriire local government area of Ogbomoso, Oyo state, is one of the communities selected as pilot site for the N80b South West Development Commission (SWDC)’s rural transformation programme (Transformed Communities Programme, TransComs).

This was disclosed recently even as an all-encompassing summit was held earlier this week at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, capital of Oyo state, to launch the programme. The summit, attended by senior representatives from across Nigeria’s federal and state governments, leading development finance institutions, and major private sector players was aimed at making them align, with the design, funding structure, and implementation pathway for TranComs.

Fapote is one of the two pilot sites that have been secured in Oyo state, the other is in Ibapara. The programme is expected to have been established in 137 communities (TransCom units) in the Southwest by 2030, covering all local government areas in Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, and Lagos States, with an interim target of 12 operational sites by the end of 2026, ogbomosoinisightonline.com, learned.

The SWDC, the anchor of the programme, is a federal government statutory body established to drive equitable and sustainable development across Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti and Lagos states.

The initiative, which is in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, aims to boost rural economies and attract private investment so as to lift living standards of millions of rural dwellers and drive massive employment. It will ensure such communities rely less on interventions by government, which is noted is often irregular. Thus, it is to address the issue of deficits in organized infrastructure around farming communities viz: cold storage facility, processing facility, reliable electricity, mobile money agent, healthcare worker, digital market connection, schools etc.

Explaining the modus operandi of the programme, a statement by SWDC noted, “The programme takes clusters of three to five neighbouring villages – between 2, 000 and 8, 000 people – and organizes them into a single economic and governance unit: a TransCom. Each unit is built around seven integrated pillars – agricultural productivity, agro-industrial processing, energy access, digital infrastructure, healthcare, microfinance, and social protection – sequenced so that each reinforces the next.

“The result is a community cluster capable of anchoring agro-processing investment, training its own farmers, powering its own facilities, connecting to digital markets, accessing credit, and governing its own development without dependence on the sporadic arrival of government projects or donor cycles.”

The programme, led by the SWDC, is in partnership with Foundation for Technology Innovation (FTID) and Sustainable Development – under the leadership of Prof Oyebanji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, one of Africa’s foremost scholars of industrial and technological development.

“The total programme investment is almost N100b across the full 137-LGA rollout, with the Ogbomoso pilot cluster representing the first tranche of committee capital,” it added.

Shedding more light, the SWDC chairman, Senator Olubunmi Adetumbi, speaking ahead of the Ibadan launch, said, “TransComs is the most serious attempt in a generation to organize the productive potential of Southwest Nigeria’s rural communities into a coherent economic programme. The partners in this room on 5 May will not be witnesses to a launch. They will be architects of it.”

Another report maintained, “The Fapote Southern Development Project is part of a larger initiative aimed at boosting rural economies and attracting private investment. The South West Development Commission (SWDC) is set to launch an #80 billion rural transformation programme, with Fapote selected as one of the pilot communities in Oyo state. This project seeks to create self-sustaining rural economies capable of reducing dependence on irregular government interventions.”

Part of the reason Fapote is selected is because of its location on a major highway, Akala Memorial Highway (Ogbomoso – Iseyin road), near Ogbomoso, which is believed makes it accessible to production centres and markets.

“Fapote’s strategic location allows for easy access to major economic routes, connecting production zones and consumption markets. The area’s proximity to Ibadan, Nigeria’s largest city by landmass, and Ogbomosho, a key trade hub, makes it an attractive location for investment and commerce. The ongoing road projects, such as the Isalu-Ikere Road, further deepen this advantage.”

It is further asserted, “The project aligns with similar initiatives globally, focusing on rural development, community strengthening, and economic growth. For instance, the Southern Governorates Rural Development Project, funded by IFAD, has invested $11.28 million in land development, fisheries, and livestock sectors. Such projects demonstrate the potential for rural development.”

The Fapote pilot project, according to investigations by Ogbomoso Insight, is already showing early signs of progress. Groundwork is already on-going to establish key facilities including schools, healthcare centres, and agro-processing infrastructure ahead of a broader rollout across the six Southwest states.

Chief J.A. Alade, Asiwaju of Fapote, told ogbomosoinsightonline.com that the project was underway. He stated that the community had already donated over 20 acre-land and another large parcel for the industrial solar light project, while disclosing Prof Abel Ogunwale, the provost of College of Agriculture, Iseyin campus of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, is the coordinator at Fapote.

Chief Alade, a former principal of School of Nursing, Baptist Medical Centre (now Bowen University Teaching Hospital, BUTH), Ogbomoso, said the programme was a welcome development, “Anything that is capable of amplifying development in our town and Ogbomoso generally we welcome.”

Prof Abel Ogunwale in a telephone call by Ogbomoso Insight also assured the programme was ongoing ‘’and will transform Ogbomoso in a positive way when completed.”