NNPC Foundation Restates Commitment to Food Security 

Okon Bassey in Uyo

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Foundation has restated its commitment to ensuring food security in the country.

Managing Director, NNPC Foundation, Mrs Emmanuella Arukwe,  stated this yesterday during the training of vulnerable farmers in Akwa Ibom.

Arukwe said 6, 000 farmers across the country would be trained on modern farming methods and market access strategies to boost food production in the country.

Represented by Executive Director, Programme Development and Coordinator, NNPC Foundation, Dr. Bala David, Arukwe  said the foundation was dedicated to implementing impactful programmes that align with national priorities.

 According to her, more than 500 farmers in Akwa Ibom were trained by the NNPC Ltd Agricultural Training Initiative for Vulnerable Farmers on modern methods and strategies to boost food production.

The  farmers, she said, were drawn from the 31 local government areas of the state to participate in the training to equip them with techniques and market access strategies to add value to their businesses.

“This programme is a testament to our unwavering commitment to food security, economic empowerment, and national development.

“As the corporate social responsibility arm of NNPC Ltd, the NNPC Foundation is dedicated to implementing impactful programmes that align with national priorities. 

“This initiative is part of our broader efforts to support the Federal Government’s agricultural transformation agenda, which seeks to enhance food security, increase productivity, and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.

“Our goal is to equip every participant with the tools, knowledge, and resources needed to transition from subsistence farming to commercial-scale production,” Arukwe said.

Speaking,  Akwa Ibom Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Offiong Offor, thanked NNPC for the programme  to equip farmers with knowledge on modern farming.

Offor, represented by Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr Atim Okoko,  said a nation that trains farmers is a nation that would not go hungry.

“I want to express appreciation of the State Government to NNPC for mounting this laudable programme.

“A nation that start to train farmers, a nation that start to look at farmers will never go hungry.

“In this season that our President Bola Tinubu has come up with his Renewed Hope Agenda, everything is to end hunger in Nigeria,” Offor said.

The commissioner added that the programme came to complement what the state government was doing to ensure food sufficiency.

Responding on behalf of farmers, the State Chairman, Mr. Bassey Inwamg (AFAN) said farmers in the state were so grateful for the training programme.

Inwang said the training would boost food production in the state, as the farmers would use the knowledge gained to apply in their farms for increase in yields.