He spoke at Umuahia, Abia State capital, during the flag off of the state LIFE-ND policy engagement with Abia Agricultural Development Programmes (ADP) and other stakeholders on extension service delivery to its beneficiaries in the ongoing LIFE-ND project in Abia State.

Abiodun, who was represented by the LIFE-ND National Rural Coordinator, Dr. Clement Uwem, described the roles of ADP in agriculture and agribusiness as indispensable, stressing that this necessitated the LIFE-ND partnership with ADP.

According to the Abia State LIFE-ND Project State Coordinator, Dr Uchenna Rowland Onyeizu, the purpose of the event was to formally activate the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between LIFE-ND and Abia State ADP as applicable in the other nine Niger-Delta states where the project is extant.

The ADP is to do the needful on monitoring and evaluation and specifically in supportive supervision to ensure delivery of the project objectives.

The MOU is to bring them on board, so that they can readily support us in agriculture extension service. Hence, we have engaged them at this stage for an in-depth understanding to draw out a programme for implantation.

In his remarks, Uwem said that the partnership with ADP extends to gender education, climate and nutrition education with respect to poultry, cassava, rice and oil palm production and processing.

He stated that the government was yet to give the extension workers their full needed push.

The state ADP Manager, Chief Israel Amanze, expressed optimism that the presence of Life-ND project in Abia and its partnership with ADP would boost agribusinesses in the state.

He disclosed that Life-ND interventions in agribusiness were already helping families and that Abia ADP had the reservoir of the knowledge needed to drive it.

Abia ADP staff are ready to render our services as long as we are carried along towards achieving the target, which is attainment of food sufficiency and security in the state, and by extension, in the country.

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'Life-ND, ADP partnership to boost food production, livelihood' - Guardian