The Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, has expanded its commercial farming initiative with the planting of more than 2,100 cocoa and oil palm seedlings as part of efforts to boost internally generated revenue, strengthen food security and provide practical training for students.
The expansion includes 1,100 cocoa seedlings and 1,000 oil palm seedlings across the institution’s 10,000-hectare commercial farm.
The institution also commenced the harvest of cassava from the farm on Thursday for the 2026 planting season.
Earlier, the institution harvested maize was processed into products, including custard, semovita and pap.
Speaking during the cassava harvest on Friday in Ilorin, the rector, Dr. Abdul Jimo Mohammed, said the commercial farm was established to diversify the institution’s revenue base, provide hands-on agricultural training for students, enhance food production and create employment opportunities for young people.
Mohammed noted that the project was also conceived to protect the institution’s vast land from encroachment.
According to him, the initiative had yielded positive results, significantly reducing cases of encroachment despite initial resistance.
He added that the Department of Food Science Technology would process the harvested cassava into garri and other finished products, while the cassava leaves would be converted into animal feed.
On the newly established cocoa and oil palm plantations, the rector described the project as “a long-term investment that would outlive his administration and deliver lasting economic benefits to both the institution and Kwara state.”
He expressed optimism that within four years, the institution would begin harvesting cocoa and oil palm for processing into palm oil and other value-added products.