Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo of Kogi State has called on the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) to support the state in its bid to get rid of kidnapping and other violent crimes.
Ododo made the plea on Monday during a meeting with the Director-General of NASRDA, Dr. Mathew Olumide Adepoju.
According to him, Kogi State is in dire need of NASRDA cooperation to
complement efforts to combat insecurity, improve agriculture and food security, fast track land reforms and support development in other critical sectors using existing space technology and innovative capabilities of the agency.
Ododo who was accompanied to the meeting by some senior officials of the state government said the yearning for the NASRDA partnership is also to improve the state’s Geographic Information System (GIS).
He explained that a well improved GIS will help facilitate land reforms, promote agriculture and food sufficiency, security of lives and property and other critical sectors of the state’s economy.
The governor said NASRDA is in a position to help given the state of the art technology and innovative endowment at its disposal.
Ododo urged the leadership of the agency to grant the request for collaboration in line with the existing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the agency and the state government.
He said the MoU signed late last year in Lokoja covered the critical sectors already mentioned by him.
Responding, the Director General of NASRDA, Dr. Mathew Olumide Adepoju commended Governor Ododo for the level of infrastructural development and other achievements recorded within one year of his administration in Kogi State.
He thanked the governor for adopting space technology to combat insecurity and promote development in different sectors of the state’s economy.
Adepoju assured that the partnership between NASRDA and the Kogi State government will be sustained in the interest of the country and the people of Kogi state. (vitalnewsngr.com)
