The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has trained and empowered 120 smallholders in Ogun, Oyo and Kogi states on poultry production with a major focus on broiler production for a sustainable livelihood.
The participants were youths and women drawn from the three senatorial districts in the benefitting states.
Declaring the training open in Abeokuta, yesterday, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr Ernest Umakhihe, represented by the Southwest Regional Director, Mrs Abimbola Akeredolu, disclosed that the Federal Government is committed to promoting and facilitating policies aimed at making Nigeria self-sufficient in food production.
Akeredolu also stated that the training and empowerment is to expose smallholder farmers to the profitability of broilers production as a commercial business to earn a sustained living.
Speaking earlier, the Director in the Federal Department of Agricultural Extension Services, Dr Deola Lordbanjou, urged participants to take advantage of a smallholding poultry production enterprise that is highly profitable and can give farmers a flow of steady income.
The 120 participants were trained in two locations, Abeokuta for Ogun and Oyo states and Lokoja for Kogi State. They were exposed to modern technologies of broiler production while each participant was given day-old chicks and feeds.
A participant at the training, Bunmi Olatunde, commended the organisers for the valuable training and empowerment opportunity given to them by the ministry.
