NAOC Disburses N19m To 35 Cooperatives

The Managing Director Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC), Ciro Antonio Pagano, has stated that the company’s Green River Project (GRP) has disbursed a total of N19 million to 35 farming co-operative societives and women/youth organisations in its operation area.

Pagano who stated this on Saturday during the 16th edition of GRP annual farmers day celebration at Plant Propagation Centre, Obie, Ogba/Egbeme/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State, said the event is geared towards bringing together individual farmers, farmers cooperative societies, youth co-operative and other allied organisations, also afford them opportunity to showcase their produce, and products as well as other services.

He said over the years through the GRP, NAOC had invested continuosly for the sustainable development of agric sector, reaching out to over 3,500 farmers, assisting them with updated techniques and modern technologies to boost productivity.

According to him,” in 2011 from our plant propagation centre, we produced and distributed to farmers, 3000,000 bundles of improved cassava (CMD resistant) Varieties to 251 farmers, 12,000 seed yams to 96 farmers, 100 bundles of sweet patato vines to 47 farmers, 30kg Okro seeds to 101 farmers, 31,000 plantain suckers to 85 farmers, 7,000 pinapple suckers to 20 farmers and 1,500 various indigenous fruit trees to 186 farmers,”

He noted that as part of skill acquisition programme for capacity building, the company had trained and provided starter packs to 541 youths in various trades, distributed 200,000 fingerlings to fish farmers, provided post harvest storage facilities and food processing machines to some co-operative societies  as well as sponsoring agricultural quiz competition amongst secondary schools in its operational states of Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta and Imo.

Also speaking, the General Manager District, NAOC, Giovanni Salvini said through GRP the company had demonstrated her corporate social responsibility with a sustained effort aimed at improving the lots of the host communities.

In a goodwill message, the Director, National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), Umudike, Dr Thomas Okeke Ezulike, commended NAOC-GRP for championing aggressive rural and agricultural transformation programme aimed at empowering farm house holds in the Niger Delta.

The dean, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Port Harcourt, Prof Love Akonye who represented the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Joseph Ajienka, assured to lend their support in providing training to all categories of farmers.