The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) on Sunday advised governments at all levels to replicate the Ekpan fish farm project in Delta State to create jobs in the country.
IFAD consultant on Rural Infrastructure Development, Mr Harry Denecke, gave the advice at Ekpan in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State.
The IFAD team was on inspection visit to some of its community-based natural resources programmes, including the Ekpan fish farm in the state.
Denecke said the farmers were successful in the fish business and had acquired the expertise to make it work in other parts of the state and across the country.
“The fish farms that we have visited were straightforward successes with about 4,000 youths employed; the people are making better life because of the fish ponds. There may be minor problems, but that is not important; at the moment, there is sufficient room for expansion. “We are looking into opportunities inside Nigeria; this is a follow up to an existing project, and this can serve as a very good example to replicate in Delta and other states,” Denecke said.
He said that IFAD initiated, supported and pledged to sustain the project, as well as, together with state governments, identify sites where the aquaculture could be replicated.
Chairman, Uvwie Fish Farmers Cooperative Society, Mr Henry Ogbodu said that the umbrella body of all the fish farmers association in the area lauded the technical support received from IFAD.
According to Ogbodu, the skills had helped the farmers to expand and sustain their projects when others were crashing out. “I want to say that IFAD intervention has been of great assistance to us and as you can see, we are trying to reduce poverty in our country through fish farming,’’ he said.
On her part, Mrs Patience Abiri, Secretary, Uvwie Fish Farmers Cooperative Society, said that the business had helped to check rural-urban migration of youths.
She noted that 60 per cent of the farming population were youths, majority of whom were women.