A one-day on-farm skills training for women and youths in the poultry value chain has ended with a call on participants to make adequate preparations before embarking on the business.
Angel Network News (ANN) reports that
the training was powered by the Department of Livestock Extension and Business Development, Abuja, under the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development.
Addressing participants at the Ministry of Agriculture, Awka, the Zonal Coordinator, Federal Ministry of Livestock Development, South East Zone, Dr. Benjamin Puja, said the capacity-building workshop was an initiative of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to encourage farmers by highlighting the importance of the livestock sector, noting that the era of viewing livestock farming as mere or ordinary farming is over, as the industry contributes about 32 billion US dollars.
Dr. Puja disclosed that the idea behind the creation of the ministry was to transform the nation into an industry capable of contributing about 74 billion US dollars to Nigeria’s economy by 2035, and therefore urged participants to be attentive and fully utilize all the processes to acquaint themselves with best practices in growing their birds and other agricultural activities.
While enlightening participants on what they need to know about livestock farming, an Assistant Chief Animal Husbandry Officer of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development, Abuja, Mr. Paul Olurunfemi, maintained that the training was aimed at empowering them on how to grow their birds, as well as the best approaches to keep, maintain, and prepare them for business, noting that many farmers lose their investments due to lack of seriousness, poor planning and preparation, inadequate technical knowledge, among other factors.
Mr. Olurunfemi further exposed the participants to the nitty-gritty of the process and strategies for achieving success in poultry farming.
