ABIA YOUTHS TRAINED IN AGRIBUSINESS RECEIVE GRANTS

#AbiaOnline
Agriculture is getting the required boost and attention in the Governor Okezie Ikpeazu’s administration. This became pertinent because of the need to diversify and inflate the local economy, empower our people in an irreplaceable means of putting food on our table.
It is a common knowledge that dependency on the petrodollars is no longer sustainable assessing from our present ugly experience and predicament as a nation. Hence, the State government, through the ministry of Agriculture, has been up and doing in evolving a progressive template that will create opportunities in agriculture, and become a money spinner for our people.
Latest of such programmes and empowerment is the training of 300 Abia youths in agricultural entrepreneurship and disbursing of N2.5 million to each of the trainees under the Fadama Guys Agripreneur grant.
It could be recalled that Governor Okezie Ikpeazu, way back in 2016, authorised the payment of counterpart fund from the 2016 CACS loan to make possible the participation in the Fadama 3 Additional finance programme.
This step by our visionary Governor Ikpeazu was fruitful, as it gave an unprecedented boost to agriculture, serving as the footing for the National Fadama coordinating office approval for 2017 cropping season business plans of over N2billion as grants to Abia farmers across cassava and Rice value chains, via the Abia State Fadama office efficiently coordinated by Dr. Ezinne Otuka.
Leaping to approval for funding of the rehabilitation of World Bank Igu River Dam that irrigates over 20,000 hectares of farmland for yearly cultivation on the Abia Rice Belt that spans across Umuahia North through Bende, Isuikwuato and Ohafia LGAs.
Impressively, Fadama has built 2 Rice Mills with de-stoners progressively; the Ministry of Agriculture Abia rice brainchild was milled and de-stoned in December 2016, from the Atani Abam Arochukwu Rice mill.
Appreciatively, the state government has keyed into agriculture to ginger wealth creation and improved standard of living for Abians. The erstwhile efficient and performing former commissioner for Agriculture, Hon. Uzo Azubuike, did a yeoman’s job, thought outside the box which has brought back the sector on its feet.
It is important to assert that funding is very crucial to agribusiness as such the State government has always liaised with concerned agencies and stakeholders to give agriculture its rightful position in the State.