By Fatima Saka
The African Union Development Agency and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD), in collaboration with Delta Government, has trained and empowered 3,380 farmers in Delta to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and flooding in Nigeria.
Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, on Wednesday in Asaba launched the One-Day training programme, organized by AUDA-NEPAD and the Delta Government.
Okowa stated that the program is of the benefits of farmers would be has been trained in six commodities; fisheries, rice, cassava, poultry, piggery and vegetables.
With the theme: “Innovative Strengthening of Smallholder Farmers Capabilities Towards Productive Land Restoration Amid COVID-19 and Flood in Nigeria”.
The Governor, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Chief Patrick Ukah, commended the African Union, AUDA-NEPAD for selecting Delta as one of the pilot states in Nigeria for the implementation of the programme.
He added that the programme has been domesticated and domiciled in the state Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources as a 10-year plan to grow agriculture and boost food security in the state.
According to the governor, this programme is one of the landmark initiatives of the African Union which came on the heels of economic devastation brought by COVID-19 pandemic.
“Its four major objectives are, eradicating poverty, promoting sustainable growth and development, integrating Africa and the World economy, including the accelerating development of women.
“Agriculture remains central to African countries in their pursuit of these objectives but they lack the technical leverage of the industrialized world.
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“Hence the broad aim of the programme is to strengthen smallholder farmers, accelerate productive land restoration, combat desertification and promote the use of innovative technology to reduce post-harvest losses and maximize food security in Nigeria and in Africa.
“Against this backdrop, the AUDA-NEPAD programme is domesticated for sustainability, it’s a 10-year plan food sufficiency in our continent.
“It will help to meet the domestic food need and actualise the zero hunger policy of Nigeria, the African Union and the SMART Agenda of Delta.”
Okowa added, “to achieve this in Delta, the AUDA-NEPAD, with the support of the state government, has screened and selected 3,380 smallholder farmers across the 25 Local Government Areas of the state comprising men, women and persons living with disabilities.”
He, however, charged the participants to remain committed to the programme in order to grow the country’s economy through agriculture.
In her remarks, National Co-ordinator and Chief Executive Officer, AUDU-NEPAD, Princess Gloria Akobundu, represented by its State Director, Mrs Christie Eruotor, said the programme was to cushion the impact of COVID-19 and Flood on the farmers.
Akobundu, however, said that the benefiting farmers would be adequately empowered at the end of the programme on innovative technologies on how to increase their farming activities.
Earlier, in his address, the State Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Dr Geoffrey Enita, said that the programme was an intervention of the African Union that entails a 10-year support for African governments.
