By Isaiah Eka
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Foundation has renewed its commitment to ensuring food security in the country.
Mrs Emmanuella Arukwe, Managing Director, NNPC Foundation, said this on Wednesday in her remarks during the training of vulnerable farmers in Akwa Ibom.
Arukwe said that 6, 000 farmers across the country would be trained on modern farming methods and market access strategies to boost food production in the country.
Arukwe, who was represented by Dr Bala David, Executive Director, Programme Development and Coordinator, NNPC Foundation, added that the Foundation was dedicated to implementing impactful programmes that aligned with national priorities.
She said that more than 500 farmers in Akwa Ibom were trained by the NNPC Ltd Agricultural Training Initiative for Vulnerable Farmers on modern methods and strategies to boost food production.
Arukwe added that the farmers were drawn from the state’s 31 local government areas to participate in the training to equip them with techniques and market access strategies to add value to their businesses.
“This programme is a testament to our unwavering commitment to food security, economic empowerment and national development.
“As the corporate social responsibility arm of NNPC Ltd, the Foundation is dedicated to implementing impactful programmes that align with national priorities.
“This initiative is part of our broader efforts to support the Federal Government’s agricultural transformation agenda, which seeks to enhance food security, increase productivity, and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.
“Our goal is to equip every participant with the tools, knowledge, and resources needed to transition from subsistence farming to commercial-scale production,” Arukwe said.
In her remarks, Dr Offiong Offor, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Akwa Ibom, thanked NNPC for the initiative to equip farmers with knowledge on modern farming.
Offor, represented by Dr Atim Okoko, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that a nation that trained farmers was a nation that would not go hungry.
“I want to express the state government’s appreciation to NNPC for mounting this laudable programme.
“A nation that starts to train farmers, a nation that starts to look at farmers will never go hungry.
“In this season that our President Bola Tinubu has come up with his Renewed Hope Agenda, everything is to end hunger in Nigeria,” Offor said.
The commissioner added that the programme came to complement what the state government was doing to ensure food sufficiency.
Responding on behalf of farmers, Mr Bassey Inwang, State Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) said farmers in the state were so grateful for the training.
Inwang said the training would boost food production in the state, as the farmers would apply the knowledge gained on their farms for increase in yields.
He said, “We want to tell you that we will not take this training for granted, we will apply it properly on our farms.” NAN
