Agric Empowerment: Ebonyi Farmers Receive Free Grinding Machines from Federal Government.

Fifteen farmers in Ebonyi State have been empowered with free motorized grinding machines from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, in collaboration with the Ebonyi State Agricultural Development Programme, EBADEP.

The farmers, mainly youths and women, are the first batch of beneficiaries out of the over 55 Yam farmers trained by the Ministry in June, 2023.

Flagging-off the distribution, Monday, at the EBADEP headquarters, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State capital, the State Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Engr. William Obaze, explained that the empowerment was a follow-up to the training of Yam farmers in the State conducted in June by the Ministry.

The Director, represented by a Staff of the Ministry, Rose Ukpo, noted that the aim was to help the farmers own a mini processing machine for their yams and grains, add more value to their farm produce and save more money for the wellbeing of their families.

Obaze said: "With this, we want to achieve food security.

"We want the farmers to have more money in their pockets, and we want them to see Agriculture as a business, creating a better life for their families."

Addressing the beneficiaries, a representative of the national office of the Ministry, Edet Uwe, charged them not to sell off the Machines but use them to improve in the processing of their farm produce.

He commended Ebonyi State government and her farmers for their dexterity and commitment in the Agricultural sector, and assured that more batches would soon be empowered.

The Programme Manager, EBADEP, Mr Gabriel Odo, speaking on EBADEP's role in the exercise explained that EBADEP is the extension arm of the Ministry of Agriculture constantly in touch with the farmers.

He noted that the beneficiaries were selected through the zonal EBADEP field Extension officers who deal directly with genuine farmers in the State.

On the question of why the beneficiaries were mostly women, Odo responded: "we have come to realize that small scale farmers are mostly women, and the federal government is aware of that, and are targeting those women that are actually doing the farming, and not portfolio farmers.

Some of the beneficiaries who spoke to journalists, including Celestina Elom, Marcellina Ogbala and Michael Elom expressed joy over the development.

They promised to effectively utilise the Machines for the purpose they were meant, and solicited the Ministry to empower more batches of the farmers as soon as possible.