The Niger Delta Development Commission has commenced a partnership with communities in the Niger Delta region to empower 4,500 rice and cassava farmers to ensure food security in the region and country at large.
Its Managing Director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, revealed this at the headquarters of the NDDC in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Ogbuku spoke during the onboarding programme for the empowerment of the farmers.
He said the initiative was part of the proactive effort of President Bola Tinubu to empower people of the Niger Delta and promote food security in Nigeria.
Ogbuku, who was represented by the Executive Director, Projects, Sir Victor Antai, said that the flagship agricultural initiative would support smallholder rice and cassava farmers with data, financing, farm inputs, mechanisation and extension services to sustainably produce rice and cassava to enhance their income and contribute to food sufficiency in the Niger Delta region.
He stated: “This programme is conservatively projected to produce 12,000 tons of paddy rice and 10,500 tons of cassava tubers in the pilot phase.
“This is at a conservative yield of 4 tons per hectare for rice and 7 tons per hectare for cassava respectively.
“In addition to supporting farmers with factors of production, this project will connect farmers to the market by providing off-taking and help them build the performance and credit record they need to benefit subsequently from commercial financing.
“We are aware that some agricultural programmes in the region are hampered by lack of land preparation occasioned by the thick vegetation and storage.
“We will use the successful example of this initiative to catalyse the required investment in agricultural infrastructure.”
The NDDC boss charged the farmers involved in the initiative to set the tone for scaling the successful integration of Niger Delta farmers into modern agricultural value chains, noting: “The Niger Delta Development Commission will support farmers to enhance good agronomic practices and accelerate the development and adoption of relevant scientific and technological applications to enhance productivity and sustainability.”
Ogbuku said that the NDDC was conscious of the impact of climate change in the Niger Delta and would work with relevant partners to introduce climate adaptation and mitigation measures to support farmers, including the adoption of climate smart agriculture.
Speaking earlier, the NDDC Director, Agriculture and Fisheries, Winifred Madume, described the project as capable of enhancing the agricultural activities and economic well-being of the people.
Madume assured that NDDC would carry out adequate monitoring and evaluation to ensure the success of the project.
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She stated that Niger Delta was a significant contributor to agricultural production in Nigeria, adding that the region was also a leading producer of cassava.
The project consultant, Dimieari Kemedi, commended the NDDC for the initiative, which he said would help the Niger Delta contribute to regional and National food security and attract funding to the agricultural sector.
Kemedi noted: “Food security here means not just availability but also affordability.
“This programme will contribute to reducing food inflation in the Niger Delta through greater availability of food and also by reducing the cost of the logistics component since the food will be produced here in the Niger Delta.”
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