Enugu govt, FG distribute power tiller machines to flood victims

Cosmas Chukwu

The Enugu State government in collaboration with the Nigeria Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus, NG-CARES, programme, has distributed power tiller machines to over four hundred farmers whose farmlands were destroyed by the flooding at Ezinese Oduma and Okpanku communities both in Aninri local government area.

Performing the function at the state ministry of Agriculture, Governor Peter Mbah, represented by the commissioner for Agriculture and Agro allied industrialization, Patrick Ubru said the intervention was in line with his administration’s vision to eradicate hunger and poverty in the state.

NG-CARES is a federal government programme aimed at responding to hardship perpetrated by the COVID-19 pandemic in line with its vision to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in ten years.

Describing the state as the highest producer of cassava with over one hundred thousand farmers, Dr Mbah said the introduction of farming machines was to make agriculture attractive to everyone and more lucrative.

While advising the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the farming machines, the governor noted that other interventions are lined up to cushion the effect of the flood disaster and encourage the victims.

He said plans are underway to create farmers parliament, a platform where the farmers will be interacting with the government in order to identify various areas of their needs and assist them in increasing the productivity of their agricultural produce.

Also, the acting state project coordinator, FADAMA, Mr Ndubuisi Eze who said the agency is responsible for the implementation of the NG-CARES programme, noted that FADAMA had earlier conducted the need assessments of communities and gathered them for governor’s approval before embarking on the exercise.

Receiving the machines from the state government, the farmers who could not hide their joy, thanked the governor for his intervention and promised to put the equipment into proper use.