The Federal Government of Nigeria, FGN, in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-Assisted Value Chain Development Program (VCDP) in Kogi State, has distributed agricultural equipment to farmers and start-up packages to 33 Persons With Disabilities (PWDs).

The intervention, designed to promote inclusive economic development and sustainable livelihoods, was carried out on Monday in Lokoja.

Beneficiaries included farmers engaged in agricultural production, processing and marketing, as well as women from Ajaokuta, Lokoja, Ibaji, Olamaboro and Kabba-Bunu Local Government Areas.

Speaking on behalf of the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Timothy Ojomah, the Permanent Secretary, Moses Dare, said the intervention reflected the state government’s commitment to extending development opportunities to vulnerable groups.

Dare said the programme was intended to go beyond the distribution of equipment by helping beneficiaries become self-reliant, improve their livelihoods and rebuild their confidence.

He also encouraged beneficiaries to use the items productively and participate in cooperative structures to maximise the benefits of the intervention.

The State Project Coordinator of IFAD-VCDP in Kogi, Dr Stella Adejoh, said the programme was based on the principle that disability should not be a barrier to economic productivity.

Adejoh disclosed that participating farmers paid 30 per cent of the cost of the equipment, while the support provided to PWD beneficiaries came at no cost.

The 33 PWD beneficiaries received a range of items, including bags of rice, tables, chairs, bowls and Point of Sale terminals. They had also undergone training on the use of the items to establish and manage small businesses.

The programme also reached about 300 farmers, who received equipment such as knapsack sprayers, solar-powered pumping machines, threshers, wheelbarrows and shovels.

In another component of the intervention, 350 women received energy-efficient cooking stoves connected to briquetting machines.

The machines are designed to transform rice husks and other agricultural waste into clean fuel, providing a productive use for materials that would otherwise be agricultural waste.

According to Adejoh, the initiative is expected to strengthen beneficiaries’ livelihoods while encouraging the productive utilisation of agricultural waste.

Adejoh further revealed that the VCDP had profiled 7,575 farmers across the five participating local government areas.

So far, about 5,600 farmers working within the cassava and rice value chains have received support from the programme.

She commended Governor Ahmed Ododo for the prompt payment of counterpart funds and acknowledged the support provided by the Kogi State Ministry of Agriculture to the programme.

The intervention forms part of wider efforts to strengthen agricultural value chains in Kogi State, raise farmers’ productivity and incomes, reduce post-harvest losses and support food security.

Source: MSME Africa Online