Edo State Government said it would, in collaboration with Amo Farm Sieberer Hatchery Limited and Heifer International, empower 500,000 smallholder poultry farmers by 2030 through improved poultry production practices.
The state governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, made this known during the groundbreaking ceremony of the Heifer-supported 10,000 per day Amo Farm Poultry Processing Plant at Obayantor, Ikpoba-Okha local area of Edo.
Obaseki stated that the state was ready to harness the potentials in poultry production, to diversify the economy and eliminate unemployment in the state.
“What you are seeing here today is revolutionary because we have deliberately worked on this for the last five to six years.
” It has always been our dream to make sure that we return Edo state to its place of pride in agriculture in this country.
“Today, we are putting a processing facility that will help hatch chickens so that farmers will come and buy, they will support them with feeds, veterinary products .
“And once they have grown their chickens, they will buy back from the farmers and the farmers can go on with their normal jobs with this as a side business.
“Farmers no longer have to wait for Christmas or easter to sell their chickens because there is already an existing market they can sell to,” Obaseki said.
The Country Director of Heifer International, Rufus Idris, stated that the partnership was to support 200,000 farmers by 2025 and 500,000 farmers by 2030.
Idris said the farmers would engage in the production of boiler and broiler chicken, while a private sector partner, Amo Farm, would guarantee sustainable off-take of the chickens produced by the farmers.
He explained that the initiative would impact about 500,000 farmers, create more than 850 jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities for youths and women.
“This initiative will increase farmers access to access to innovative finance, infrastructure and innovation.
“Under this partnership, Amo Farm Sieberer Hatchery Limited is to establish a standard poultry processing plant, starting with a 10,000 chicken per day capacity.
“Nigeria consumes about 1.5 million tons of chicken annually but only 30 per cent of that is produced locally.
“Nigeria’s Poultry sector, a $4.2 billion industry, is witnessing a rise in demand for poultry meat and egg, driven by increasing population and urbanization,” he said.
According to him, Edo Government’s vision is to make the state a poultry hub that produces and processes five million chickens per week
Also speaking, the Managing Director, Amo Farms, Ayoola Oduntan, said negotiation for the plant had been on since 2017.
Represented by Alaba Yunusa, Oduntan promised to make the poultry processing plant the largest in Nigeria. nan
