… as Kwara ADP trains and empowers 30 Small Holder Farmers
By Dare Akogun
The Kwara State Government has charged poultry farmers to adhere strictly with best practices guiding the poultry business in the country.
The Press Secretary Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Yusuf Ganiyu Adebisi in a statement said the commissioner Mallam AbdulLateef Alakawa gave the charge at the opening ceremony of a 2-day training programme.
The training organised by the Kwara State Agricultural Development Project (KWADP) in conjunction with the Federal Department of Agricultural Extension was for 30 Small Holder Poultry Farmers on best Practices and Management of Poultry Business.
The Commissioner urged the trainees to maximize the opportunities of the training to improve the quality of poultry production in the State and the Country at large.
Alakawa identified livestock sub-sector as one of the major priorities of the present administration in view of its economic importance to the state government’s revenue drive and means of empowering youths and women in the State.
According to him “In order to build a prosperous Kwara, our amiable Governor has prioritized Agriculture and demonstrated this in the past three years, through his various interventions in crop farming with the distribution of highly subsidized farm inputs, distribution of small ruminant goats, fingerlings and feed to aqua-culture farmers through the State FADAMA NG CARES Programme and Noiler Chicken Initiative for Rural Women, among other empowerment programmes”, the Commissioner said.
He further commended the collaborative roles of the Kwara ADP and Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in boosting and promoting poultry business in the State.
In his remarks, the Director, Federal Department of Agricultural Extension Services, Engr. Frank Sutumari Kudla explained that the programme was recommended by the Special Technical Committee established by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, to develop a workable framework to train 30 Poultry Farmers in Kwara State.
Engr. Kudla, who was represented by the Head of Administration, Extension Department, Mr. Ibrahim Oguche, listed some of the major factors affecting poultry farming in the country to include lack of interest of farmers, low quality training and lack of funding of the sub-sector.
He added that the training is designed to empower participants with skills and tools needed for poultry business.
In her welcome address, the General Manager, Kwara ADP, Dr. Khadijat Ahmed Alege disclosed that the event is one of the series of trainings lined up for poultry farmers in the State.
Dr. Alege appreciated both the State Government and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for their support in seamless execution of the Agency’s projects and programmes in the State.
