Mr. Igbor Okoi Oki is an entrepreneur and his area of specialization is Agriculture. He is very concerned about improving the lot of the farmers in his locality through his knowledge and wealth of experience gained through his years as an ADP (agricultural development program) extension officer and is presently the farm manager of the Cross River State University of Technology.
He is a personable, enthusiastic man who has genuine interest in building the capacity of Agro based businesses in the country. I have worked with him on several different projects and so he was one of the first people to come to mind when I thought about entrepreneurs making a difference in their little corners.
Mr. Okoi provides hands on guidance for rural farmers on organic farming techniques and runs his own farm.
Business Name: Farmers Guide Initiative (FAGI)
Location: UGEP, Cross River State
Entrepreneur: Igbor Okoi Okoi
Q: What is your business structure?
A: Farmers Guide Initiative (FAGI) is a partnership between Rev. Okoi Edet and me.
Q: How long have you been in business and what is your staff strength?
A: Farmers Guide Initiative has been in business for five (5) years and has a staff strength of six (6) consisting of the Director, a supervisor, and 4 extension agents.
Q: How would you characterize yourself and what does one need to succeed in a business like yours?
A: I am positive, unafraid to take risks, engage in active participation and practice what I preach by running my own farm as an example to the farmers and as a source of income for myself.
Q: What made you decide to go into business for yourself?
A: The plight of the farmers in my locality who rely very heavily on farming moved me to start the Farmers Guide Initiative. It was sad to watch the farmers wring their hands and wait for the government to provide fertilizer and other support services and in the mean time harvesting poor yields. The need for an alternative support system was necessary and so I decided to give the farmers around me the advantage of the knowledge I have gained over the years to enable them produce good crops.
Q: What paperwork is involved in running your business?
A: This is the one area where most Nigerian farmers have trouble. We are seeking someone that would help us educate the farmers on proper book keeping skills. We do keep some kind of record, but most small scale farmers do not to the detriment of their business.
Q: What security measures do take to protect your goods and/or services?
A: Banking! It is very important for every entrepreneur to have a bank account and to be very fastidious about banking. This is the only way to show evidence of income and access loans that are available for small and medium sized industries. FAGI has an account with the First Bank Plc; we are also registered with CAC.
Q: How much money do you need to start this business?
A: The amount of money you need to start the business depends on how big your farm is going to be. Most people in the rural areas already have ancestral farm lands, so you are basically looking for money to buy seedlings, fertilizer and hire labor. This can cost as little as N50, 000.00 to as much as N300, 000.00. But I always tell entrepreneurs that knowledge of the business they intend to venture into is the most important element.
Q: What makes your business stand out?
A: We put high value on setting an example. The farmers can see with their own eyes how our farm is doing. Did I mention that we have a plantain and snail farm and bee hives? This is addition to planting other staples like yams and cassava, corn and vegetables. We also use “Moringa” a locally found plant as our major source fertilizer. It is rich in the nutrients that the plants and the soil needs, as opposed to NPK which after prolonged use makes the soil toxic and porous, reducing the yield a farmer can get from his farmland. Moringa is starter manure and we add it to the plants 0 – 3 days after the seedlings are planted. We also use compost manure a lot, because it is cheap, environment friendly and readily available. We want the farmers to learn to use environmentally friendly ways of farming that does not deplete the soil.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge and how have you overcome it?
A: The biggest challenge is ignorance. Getting the farmers to use the local materials is a big challenge. They have a mind set that they must depend on the government for non-organic manure, the cost of labor. But we over come this challenges through workshop, we also have our trial plot as a sample to demonstrate our point of view to the farmers. We overcome the high cost of labor by going through the age grades. We pay them a small fee and they give a mandate to their members to help us work on the farms.
Q: What advice you give to youth interested in starting your kind of business?
A: Be patient, they should approach everything naturally as it is. Do not compare yourself to other people. Be content to start small and to get familiar with what you are doing.
