As part of its mandate to promote the Agro Geo-Cooperative approach to primary production, NIRSAL Plc said it has trained over 2,000 farmers across four states of the country to boost their capacities to access and repay commercial loans.
NIRSAL which primarily targets lead farmers with the experience and skill to share new knowledge with members of their various cooperatives for its training programmes said it trained farmers in Imo state, Sokoto state, Oyo state as well as Kwara state.
In Imo State, no less than 500 participants assembled in two locations—one urban and one rural, the focus was on efficient models for fish production. It was the same in Sokoto State, while the Oyo and Kwara outings focused on cassava.
Imo State House Committee Chairman on Agriculture, Mr. Uche Agabige, lauded NIRSAL for including Imo in this round of the capacity building programme, with the belief that it would complement local efforts aimed at boosting agricultural productivity in the state.
Head of Value Chain Capacity Development at NIRSAL Plc, Mr. Ibrahim Suleiman, said that the capacity development programme, which is part of the Technical Assistance offered by NIRSAL to agricultural value chain actors under its Technical Assistance pillar, was happening simultaneously in three other states spanning four Geo-political zones.
According to Suleiman, lead farmers and extension agents in aquaculture and cassava were similarly gathered at two urban and rural locations in Sokoto, Oyo, and Kwara States, and they are expected to cascade the training to an estimated 6,000 farmers across the states.
In addition to the formation of functional cooperatives with proper governance structures, the training programme also discussed readiness for possible protocol breaches and early warning systems. Participants who spoke after the lectures said that they were delighted at the new insights they gained, pledging to share same with members of their various cooperatives.
