The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) has said the Agricultural Transformation Agenda Support Program, Phase One (ATASP-1) will create 120,000 jobs and empower 200,000 youths. This was revealed by the Programme Coordinator ATASP-1, Mr Haruna Akwashiki in his welcome remarks at the flag-off of the agricultural business training which began in Abuja yesterday.
According to Mr Akwashiki, “the objectives of ATASP-1 are to ensure food and nutrition security, employment generation and wealth creation along the rice, sorghum and cassava value chains, He said “the key outcomes of the programme include creation of 120,000 jobs,training and Empowerment of 200,000 youths and women as well as production of 20,000 metric tonnes of the key commodity food crops per annum for a period of 5 years of program implementation”. The Coordinator said “the programme will be implemented through three complementary and mutually reinforcing components which include infrastructure development, commodity value chain development and programme management”.
He added that the objective of the training is to train youth farmers in the seven participating states as seed entrepreneurs on rice,cassava and sorghum. “This intervention therefore will provide employment, enhance productivity and income and wealth creation along the commodity value chain for our beneficiaries and teeming youths” he said.
The ATASP-1 is a five-year agricultural program developed by the African Development Bank (AfDB) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD). The Program is implemented in four Staple Crops Processing Zones (SCPZs) of Adani-Omor, Bida-Badeggi, Kano-Jigawa and Kebbi-Sokoto and covers 33 LGCs in the seven states of Anambra, Enugu, Kano, Jigawa, Niger, Kebbi and Sokoto.
Commissioning the Centre, The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh said, “This is one of the most successful outings since I came into office. The simple reason being that I am now wimessing your own statements that you are in this business and that you liked it and discovered that this is where you should be”. Lamenting that the average age of farmers today is about 65 against the average age of youths of 25 and below, the Minister said, “if nothing is done we would be growing a country of chaos and anarchy”.
Chief Ogbeh, who was elated with the response by the young people to venture into agriculture said”the training has given hope to the nation’s food production and security, by becoming replacement for the aged farmers who are mostly limited in modern day agricultural practice”. He said, “You can’t imagine how proud l am because,noting that “the ‘ministry is burdened with the responsibilities of getting agriculture back. He said, ”The average age of farmers in the village is around 64, 65 noting that “the younger boys who ordinarily followed their fathers to the farm have moved to the cities. Like the young graduate who came to Abuja to take a job and was paid N500 that really blew my mind. If you look at the average of the youth is about 25 and below and you see pain in their faces”.
“Keep on working I assure you whatever energy left even we have left office we will keep supporting you. You will make it big and don’t depend on anybody, including politicians, rather have your freedom. He maintained that ”One of the things farmers run from agric is that the seed quality is so poor and the soil management, the quality of fertilizers is so bad that people plant and yield low quantity decides not to go back there.”
Source: Leadership Newspapers
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