The Aare Atunluse of Awori Kingdom and the Chairman of Mapcotec Nigeria Limited, Aare (Surveyor) Dr. Segun Osifeso, has commended the President Bola Tinubu‘s administration’s recent conversion of over 100,000 petrol-powered vehicles to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and the launch of 2,000 tractors for nationwide deployment under the Renewed Hope Agricultural Mechanisation Programme.

Aare Osifeso, who made these remarks during a chat with newsmen at Ota, noted that the CNG initiative was a significant progress in advancing the use of alternative fuel across the country.

He said that as the Federal Government ramped up efforts to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal, the initiative had achieved a major success for the country.

The renowned Surveyor particularly applauded President Tinubu’s vision to reduce the pressure on citizens by leveraging domestic energy sources like natural gas to create a more sustainable, cost-effective transportation system.

Aare Osifeso further noted that from just seven conversion centres, the country now has 265 centres nationwide, which have invariably created over 10,000 direct jobs and growth from 20 to 60 operational refuelling stations.

He praised the CNG programme for slashing operational costs for transporters and urged Nigerians to support President Tinubu’s broader energy transition plan and renewable energy vision.

“The programme is part of a broader national strategy to reduce transport and food prices while improving household incomes and one can see that public awareness that was initially low has greatly improved as Nigerians are now embracing CNG across the country as witnessed by a growing level of private sector participation with Dangote Group’s recent rollout of 4,000 CNG trucks as a testament to industry confidence in the programme”, he said

The community leader also described the Agricultural Mechanisation Programme as a landmark moment in the Tinubu administration’s food security agenda and a crucial part of efforts to empower farmers and stimulate rural development.

Aare Osifeso stressed that the government, no doubt, recognises that agricultural productivity is synonymous with national stability and food sovereignty. Therefore, he expressed his appreciation that the 2,000 tractors and accompanying implements would be distributed nationwide through a service-provider model to support smallholder farmers with access to modern equipment, reduce manual labour, and increase yields.

He, however, urged stakeholders receiving the equipment to reciprocate the government’s gesture by deploying it with maximum efficiency and taking ownership of the agricultural transformation drive, thereby contributing actively to achieving food sovereignty.