Abia ADP Partners With SASAKAWA To Enhance Food Production In Abia state

Abia ADP is Partnering with  SASAKAWA African Association to enhance food production..ADP Boss

Steve Unegbu

The Abia state Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) is partnering with the SASAKAWA African Association to enhance food production in Abia state and Nigeria as a whole.

This was made known by the Programme Manager ,Abia state ADP  ,Mr  Steve Agu during the SASAKAWA ,2019 Field Day ,held at POGMAN ,Ubani Ibeku estate, Umuahia.

Chief Agu ,urged the farmers to see the Programme as an opportunity to learn ,grow and exchange ideas ,while applauding the National SASAKAWA coordinator for visiting Abia state,even as he said ADP is  helping farmers so that middle men will not exploit them

In his speech, the  Abia state coordinator of SASAKAWA, pastor Ibe Johnson ,commended the ASASAKAWA African Association for boasting food production in Abia, saying they have trained more than 400 farmers in Abia state, adding that if funds improve ,they will cover more areas ,even as he encouraged more people to key in the Programme.

 Speaking at  training field , the chairman of Maize Association of Nigeria, Hon.Onyekachi Erondu ,lauded the organizers of the Programme for the new planting technology ,while  urging farmers to utilize the maize and cassava technology that SASAKAWA is offering to improve their crops .In the same vein the president of the POGMAN corporative society ,Comrade Ikwunze Edozie ,expressed joy over the training and the assistance given to farmers by SASAKAWA Association, informing that SASAKAWA organizers are very reliable, while describing Agriculture as a very lucrative business.

Earlier in his speech, the Representative of SASAKAWA African Association, Idris Saidu Garko pointed out that  the Federal government through the ministry of Agriculture is supporting the SASAKAWA farming programme to enhance food production in Nigeria ,by providing agricultural research findings and other inputs to Nigerian farmers.

He revealed that SASAKWA Association owned by a rich Japanese man started in Nigeria during the former President Obasanjo time and has since then gone to more than 19 States in the country.

He pointed out they have trained many farmers on how to produce bounty harvest using the technology of maize and cassava inter cropping ,adding that it is a validated research recommendation which is now handed over to farmers

According to him ,the essence of the Programme is to fight hunger in Nigeria, while challenging the people of SouthEast to utilize the opportunity.

He said the new technology allows a farmer to apply fertilizer at the same time of planting maize ,and reduce the planting space so as to produce bounty harvest.