Livestock farmers in the Federal Capital Territory have expressed gratitude to the FCT Minister, Barrister, Nyesom Wike and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's for the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone (SAPZ) program initiative for distributing bulls to livestock farmers last year, a development that has helped increase their productivity and income.
Speaking on behalf of the farmers, Taminu Umar from Tabita Fulaku livestock Cooperative group during a monitoring and evaluation exercise on Thursday, 9th of September at Paikon-Kore, praised the Minister of FCT and the SAPZ Project Coordinator for their efforts in implementing the initiative, adding that they believe that this program will help reduce unemployment and insecurity in Nigeria by providing economic opportunities for farmers.
The farmer urged the government to continue such initiatives to improve the living standards of farmers not only in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) but also across Nigeria. "This sentiment reflects the positive impact of the SAPZ program on local farmers and its potential to contribute to the country's economic growth and stability".
Speaking, Coordinator of the FCT-SAPZ Project, Dr. Omole Olateju, explained that the essence of the monitoring exercise is to assess the performance of cooperative groups that received input support under the FCT SAPZ Project.
He informed that the objectives of the monitoring exercise was to evaluate the performance of the animals given to the groups, Identify challenges faced by the groups in applying their knowledge, determine the impact of the project on existing production practices and Inform future capacity-building initiatives.
Dr. Omole stated that the project is currently being implemented in seven states and the Federal Capital Territory with each state focusing on the value chain they have comparative advantage.
The Coordinator expressed hope that the project will be expanded to other grazing reserves and area councils in the Federal Capital Territory, further increasing its impact and visibility.
Also, the Livestock Development Officer, FCT-SAPZ, Usman Vandu, reported that bulls were distributed to 11 groups of livestock farmers for fattening purposes, with each group receiving two bulls.
He explained that the monitoring exercise aimed to assess the performance and growth rate of the distributed bulls, as well as the feeding and health management practices adopted by the farmers.
Vandu hinted that the FCT-SAPZ program aims to improve the livelihoods of rural agricultural farmers, particularly livestock farmers. By providing bulls for fattening, the program enables farmers to increase their income and improve their standard of living. The program also has the potential to reduce unemployment in rural areas.
After conducting the monitoring exercise, the Livestock Development Officer expressed satisfaction with the performance of the farmers, noting that they were taking good care of the animals and were committed to achieving the program's objectives.
The officer commended the farmers for their excellent feeding and health care practices and encouraged them to continue improving their skills.
"The FCT-SAPZ program plans to expand its reach, having profiled over 5,000 farmers across crop and livestock value chains. The program aims to empower more farmers and reduce unemployment in rural areas. With the success of the program, the impact has been felt by the livestock farmers, who have expressed gratitude to the government for the support".
"The program has empowered 39 livestock cooperative groups, comprising about 239 members. The program aims to continue expanding its reach and supporting more farmers in the future".
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