Reporter Okechukwu Ezeona
The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to food security, job creation and economic empowerment through sustained investment in agriculture.
The Minister of Regional Development, Mr. Abubakar Momoh, stated this during the groundbreaking ceremony of the South-East Development Commission, Pilot Agricultural Land Development Programme in Nara Unataze, Nkanu East Local Government Area Enugu State.
Mr. Momoh said that the initiative is in line with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda designed to unlock the agricultural potential of the South-East.
He noted that the programme would promote mechanised farming, increase food production and create employment opportunities, while strengthening the value chain through processing, logistics, markets and export.
The Minister announced that the programme, implemented in partnership with the Enugu State Government, is expected to transform agriculture and stimulate economic activities in rural communities.
In his remarks, The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the South East Development Commission, Dr. Mark Okoye said that the project, covering about two hundred hectares, would serve as an integrated agricultural hub comprising dairy, poultry, fisheries, greenhouse farming, fodder production, mechanisation services and processing facilities.
He explained that the initiative would also provide practical training for young entrepreneurs, while linking smallholder farmers to processing facilities and outgrower schemes to promote commercial agriculture and strengthen regional supply chains.
Dr Okoye emphasised that the Nomeh project is the pilot phase of a larger fifty thousand-hectare agro-mechanisation programme planned across the fifteen senatorial districts in the five South East states.
He commended the Enugu State Government and community stakeholders for their support, stressing that community ownership would be critical to the sustainability of the project.
In a keynote speech, the Enugu State Governor Dr. Peter Mbah, represented by his deputy, Mr. Ifeanyi Ossai, described agricultural investment as a major pathway to poverty reduction, wealth creation and middle-class growth. He said that the state’s investments in roads, security, education and healthcare were aimed at creating an enabling environment for agribusiness. The Governor urged the SEDC to establish decentralised out-grower schemes to provide smallholder farmers in the Enugu East Senatorial Zone with access to land, training, land preparation and guaranteed markets.
He also called on traditional rulers, local authorities, forest guards and community leaders to protect the agricultural facilities against vandalism, saying that safeguarding the projects would sustain investor confidence and attract further investment. He thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for establishing the regional development commissions and appreciated all stakeholders who contributed to the success of the pilot programme.
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