In a bid to integrate classroom studies with practical economic skills among pupils and students, the Rivers State Basic Education Board (RSUBEB) has established practical model farms in 30 selected basic and primary schools across the three senatorial zones in the state.
The essence of the scheme is to comply with agricultural training programme among the junior and primary schools as a compulsory approach in line with UBEC curriculum to teach pupils and junior secondary students across the states on how to contribute to the nation’s economic development through practical agricultural knowledge as well as help their parents establish their own farms so as to ensure there is enough food for consumption and increase in family income.
The Executive Chairman of RSUBEB, Ven. Fyneface Akah stated this when he led the management team of the board to inspect the progress achieved in the school farms scheme in some schools in Emohua and Obio/Akpor local government areas of the state, last Wednesday.
Akah told newsmen after the inspection visit that the Agricultural Education Training Programme was a Federal Government initiative introduced through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) to translate educational curriculum into practical realities in order to see children integrate classroom work with practical experience.
According to him, UBEC gives each state, including FCT, an annual marching grant to develop their practical farms for the effectiveness of the scheme, adding that Rivers State has been on the top because it was the first state to introduce agricultural education since the commencement of the initiative.
“What we are doing today is to inspect the level of progress achieved in this scheme. Our state has been in the radar and the first to stage the scheme because we told UBEC that we want to have practical agricultural farm experience and our action plan was approved”, he stated.
The RSUBEB helmsman commended the agric teachers for discharging their expert experience professionally in teaching the children, which he said, has translated positive impact through the various feedbacks received from parents and members of the society.
“We have established over 30 agric training schools across the three senatorial districts in the state. Our agric teachers are doing great and properly integrating curriculum with practical experience for the children to learn. We need to bring in parents to buy in to the scheme so that when the children leave the school they will be able to help their parents develop their own farms. We have plans for sustainability”, he stated.
The Head Teachers, Mr Edmund Ohaka, Rumuji; Woleru Jane; and Wali Euchari; in their various speeches, expressed happiness over the introduction of the scheme, adding that it has great impact among the students and the society.
The Tide reports that the farms visited during the inspection include, fish, grasshopper and plantation farms domiciled at State School 1, Rumuji in Emohua LGA; State Primary School 1, Rumuoparaeli; and State Primary School, Okoro-Nu-Odu all in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state.

By: Akujobi Amadi