Mr Okon Owuna, Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, made this known during a meeting with the organised farmers’ groups in Calabar on Monday.

Owuna said that the policy thrust of Gov. Ben Ayade led-administration was aimed at developing the state through agriculture.

According to him, the first green millionaires will come from practical farmers, saying that agriculture should be rooted to upscale farmers from the outmoded method.

He said that farmers should embrace the mechanised way which would lead to large scale agricultural products.

Owuna said that Cross River was the second cocoa-producing state and among the five leading ones cultivating rice in Nigeria.

The commissioner said that the ministry had been mandated to create a database for registered farmers in the state for proper evaluation and reach.

“The essence of this meeting is to interface with the farmers and chart a way forward in the agricultural sector.

“I want to urge you all to be dedicated in your farming because the state government is ready to support with necessary facilities to improve production capacity’’, he said.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Unimniake Ugbe, said that the governor had done more in agriculture than any other sector in the state.

Ugbe said that there was the need for government and the farmers to work as a team to achieve concrete result.

He called on the groups to collaborate with the ministry for effective service delivery.

Mr Sunday Ojong, who spoke on behalf of the farmers, thanked the government through the ministry of agriculture for placing premium on agriculture in the state.

Ojong also expressed thanks to Ayade for procuring inputs for cocoa farmers worth N50 million, saying that it would go a long way to improve production capacity.