In a bid to align with the Federal Government’s paradigm shift from petroleum based economy to agriculture base, National Horticultural Research Institute (NIHORT), has trained 200 farmers on plantain value chain in Delta State.
The training and empowerment programme organise and supervised by NIHORT in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, was aimed to improve the livelihood of the farmers, not just in Delta State, but also across the country where similar programmes have been held and are to be held
The beneficiaries are mostly women farmers and unemployed youth in Ndokwa West local government, Ndokwa East local government and Ukwani local government areas of Delta State, Nigeria.
The Executive Director of NIHORT, Dr. Mohammed Lawal Attanda, who was represented by Director of Research, Dr. Ephraim Nwanguma, said the training will equip women and youth with skills and competencies necessary in plantain value chain that will ensure sustainable agricultural development, improve individual income and economic empowerment.
He also noted that the Federal Government’s efforts and focus on agriculture to strongly drive the diversification of the country’s economy will be enhanced through the training, saying, “The training would promote food security, employment opportunities, wealth creation and improve household income.
He said the institute’s mandate is to conduct research into genetic improvement, production technologies, processing, storage, utilization and marketing of fruits, vegetables, ornamental plants and spices.
He added that NIHORT has competence in building the capacity of stakeholders in arrays of horticultural crops such as plantain, banana, citrus, mango, tomato, pepper, Irvingia, and mushrooms across the country.
The Coordinator of the workshop, Dr. J. A. Akinfasoye, gave an overview of the workshop; what the participants should expect during the training, just as he encouraged the participants to fully participate in the workshop to acquire the knowledge and skills that would enhance their livelihood and the development of the country.
The Managing Director of the consulting firm, GAKFAWS Investments Consult Ltd, Ambassador Chibuzor Okereke, in his remark, appreciated the Federal Government for the empowerment programme to alleviate poverty of the populace. He expressed gratitude to the lawmaker for facilitating the training programme, while he also encouraged the participants to transfer the skills acquired to others.
The training aimed at promoting food security, employment opportunities, wealth creation, household income, and health status of the populace.
The training covered plantain ripening and areas of intervention, value added products from plantain, pre-processing operations, modes of drying, packaging, storage, flow chart for processing plantain products, plantain chip processing business and economics of plantain value addition.
Participants at the training commended NIHORT and promised to put into practice all the knowledge acquired from the training. They also affirmed that the commodity value chain has potential to contribute to food security, generate employment and sustainable livelihood.
Two of the participants, Mrs. Fidelia Oyemike, said, she has a better understanding of the plantain value addition, while Mr. Achudume David, said he was impressed with the training and planned to start his cottage processing.
Plantain is an important crop of great economic importance and of high demand in Nigeria. It is a valuable raw material for processed products such as plantain flour, chips, baby food, biscuit etc. It is a profitable horticultural crop that provides income to farmers and agents involved in its input supplies, production, marketing and transporting. Plantain serves as an industrial raw material for the food and beverage industry for making baby weaning foods, biscuits, bread, and cakes. It is a low-capital agribusiness; very lucrative and most Nigerian soil is good for plantain production. Nigeria has a comparative advantage in plantain production and is one of the major producers of plantain in the world. The country ranked fifth in plantain production in the world and a production figure of 3,077,159 tonnes was obtained in 2020 (FAO Statistics). The commodity is commercially viable and a money-spinner for those who take advantage of the value chain.
Plantain value addition was considered relevant for consideration because of the contribution of the commodity to food and nutrition security, economic empowerment, employment generation, sustainable livelihood and export potential. The need assessment conducted in the state also confirmed this position.
