Dangote Cement Plc has trained and distributed farm inputs to 60 farmers in Okpella community, Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, as part of its community development efforts.
The company’s Head of Procurement, Sunday Oyelude, disclosed this on Wednesday at the closing of a three-day training and empowerment programme for farmers in the community.
Speaking during the distribution of the inputs, Oyelude explained that the empowerment of farmers formed part of the company’s community development agreement designed to support host communities.
“This initiative fell under the agreement designed to support farmers in the areas. This is the annual farmers’ empowerment programme where indigenous people are trained on the use of farm inputs and are empowered with such. About 60 farmers were trained by a consultant agronomist for a period of two days and the inputs were presented to them,” Oyelude said.
Also speaking, the company’s Social Performance Manager, Daniel Obamina, stated that the empowerment was aimed at uplifting the lives of farmers in the community while promoting sustainable agricultural best practices.
Obamina noted that the 60 beneficiaries were carefully selected from various villages within Okpella community. They were trained on agrochemicals handling and usage, fertiliser application, agronomic principles, crop management, and loss reduction, among other topics.
He added that the company continues to implement several interventions in the community, including women empowerment programmes, road construction, and the award of scholarships to indigent students in secondary schools and tertiary institutions.
The distributed items included 30 cartons of sunphosate, 30 cartons of Jungly-phosate, 30 cartons of relisate, 30 cartons of foliar plus, eight cartons of imiforce, 12 cartons of diutop, 60 bags of OPV hybrid maize, and 60 pressurized knapsack sprayers.
Earlier, the Chairman of Okpella Community Development Association, Peter Afiabor, encouraged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the inputs to enhance agricultural activities in the area. He commended Dangote Cement for its cordial relationship with the community and expressed appreciation for the empowerment programme.
“You have been trained and given farm inputs; make good use of them to enhance the economy of Okpella,” Afiabor said.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Mr. Kola Ilabeshi expressed gratitude to the company for the intervention. “We want to say ‘thank you’ to the management of Dangote PLC for empowering us. The training and inputs given to us will improve our farming skills and boost food production in the community,” he stated.
