Business
Rivers Songhai Project For Commissioning, Soon
The Songhai cassava project initiated by the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency, RSSDA at Bunu Tai in Tai Local Government Area of the state will be commissioned by the first quarter of this year.
This was disclosed by the Executive Director of RSSDA, Mr Noble Pepple at The Tide Roundtable yesterday.
According to the Executive Director, the project, which started last year was 90% completed and would soon kick-off in earnest.
Infrastructures and world class facilities needed for proper implementation of the Songhai model or agriculture have been put in places, he said.
Mr Pepple further hinted that the Songhai agricultural initiative was part of government’s policy of boosting sustainable agricultural development programme in the state.
He said the programme was targeted at about 4,500 cassava farmers, saying that presently, some people are undergoing training abroad on the programme.
In line with the vision of the Rivers State Government on agricultural development in the state, he said, the agency had engaged in a partnership with Shell Petroleum Development Company and other corporate institutions to establish major cassava processing plants in the state.
Part of the measures of achieving the state agricultural policy, according to the RSSDA boss, was to collaborate with the Faculty of Agriculture, Rivers State University of Science and Technology.
“RSSDA, he said would provide scholarship for every Rivers person who gains admission into the faculty”.
The RSSDA boss also disclosed that the state University of Science and the Ministry of Agriculture had already ceded heir farms at Onne and Rumuodomaya, respectively to the agency for operational activities.
He assured that the needed market would be created to boost the productivity of farmers in the state.
Taneh Beemene