The training of 1,020 beneficiaries under the Livelihood Improvement Family Enterprise in the Niger Delta (LIFE-ND) Project has commenced in Edo State, with participants receiving practical knowledge and skills to establish sustainable and profitable agribusiness enterprises.
The ongoing training, which is taking place in over 100 communities in Edo State, is focused on four major agricultural value chains—poultry, fisheries, cassava and rice production—with emphasis on production, processing, value addition, marketing and job creation.
The National Project Coordinator of LIFE-ND, Engr. Abiodun Sani, represented by Mrs.Stella Manure, said the project was designed to improve rural livelihoods, promote agribusiness, create employment and strengthen agricultural value chains across the Niger Delta region.
Addressing the beneficiaries on Thursday in Benin City, Manureh urged them to see themselves as agricpreneurs, job creators and agents of development, stressing that the ongoing training was more than an ordinary capacity-building exercise.
She said the programme was providing participants with the knowledge, technical skills, mentorship and entrepreneurial capacity required to build sustainable enterprises and contribute to the economic development of their communities.
Also speaking, the Edo State Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Friday Ehiorobo, said the training of the 1,020 beneficiaries was being conducted across the four selected agricultural value chains of poultry, fisheries, cassava and rice.
Ehiorobo said the participants were expected to acquire not only production techniques but also practical skills in processing, value addition, marketing and enterprise development.
He added that the objectives of the LIFE-ND Project aligned with the developmental mandate of the NDDC, particularly its commitment to interventions that improve livelihoods and create sustainable economic opportunities for people across the Niger Delta.
Representing the NDDC State Director, Mrs. Osabuohien Clementina urged the beneficiaries to take the ongoing training seriously, describing the opportunity as more than government assistance.
She said the programme should be seen as a foundation upon which the beneficiaries could build sustainable businesses and become economically independent.
The Permanent Secretary, Edo State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Mrs. Bamaiyi Rebecca, said the initiative was in line with the vision of the Edo State Government under the SHINE Agenda, particularly its focus on human capital development, economic empowerment, social inclusion and creating opportunities for citizens to prosper.
She urged the beneficiaries to take advantage of the ongoing training by acquiring the necessary skills and knowledge that would enable them to contribute meaningfully to the economic growth and development of Edo State.
In his remarks, the State Project Coordinator, Mr. John Omoruyi, commended the Federal Government, NDDC and participating states for supporting the LIFE-ND initiative aimed at empowering unemployed youths and improving livelihoods across the country.
Omoruyi encouraged the beneficiaries to remain committed throughout the duration of the training, describing it as a significant step towards developing their knowledge, technical skills and confidence as agribusiness entrepreneurs.
He said the success of the LIFE-ND Project would not be measured solely by the number of beneficiaries trained, but by the businesses established, jobs created, incomes improved and communities transformed as participants apply the knowledge and skills acquired from the ongoing programme.
