The Food and Agriculture Organisation  (FAO) has reiterated commitment to train farmers on best farming practices, boost crop yield and enhance their incomes.
The Media Consultant to FAO, Mrs Helen Okon, gave the commitment in a statement in Abuja, Wednesday.
She said that the training became important because Federal Government had made efforts to curtail importation, boost local production of rice and meet national demand and the need to enhance farmers’ productivity.
According to her, FAO is organising four-day capacity building workshop for farmers through collaboration with government of Nigeria and Republic of South Korea from October 2 to October 5 toward that effect.
Okon said:, “The workshop holding in Abakiliki, Ebonyi is part of tripartite agreement signed in 2015 to develop capacity of local producers, through South-South cooperation project covering Burkina-Faso and Cote d’ Iviore.
“The project, entitled Capacity Development and Experience Sharing for Sustainable Rice Value Development in Africa through South-South Cooperation”, seeks to equip farmers with entrepreneurial skills to enhance productivity.
“It is also to help the rice farmers in the value chain to maximise profits and build their capacities to do more,” she said.
She said that the participants would be more positioned to take advantage of the rice value chain and upscale their income through appropriate technologies and effective management of agricultural inputs.
She identified systemic rice intensification technology; focus on soil conservation, water and soil fertility and crop rotation to be among the key areas the training would focus on.
Okon quoted the FAO Country Representative in Nigeria, Suffyan Koroman, as saying that the backward integration policy of government on rice would become more realisable through such capacity building.
“FAO support to the farmers also targets enhanced food and nutrition security as well as poverty alleviation,” she said.
She identified members of staff of Ebonyi Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, representatives from Project Implementation Unit, extension agents, community-based groups and youths as major beneficiaries of the training.