By Obinwa Nnaji

A two-day action packed lecture workshop series, organised by Alhaji Sani Nnaji Foundation, to equip rural farmers in Isi-Uzo Local Government of Enugu State ended at the weekend in Enugu, with promising notes of a greater agricultural involvement by the people of the area.

Perhaps , for the first time. the prospective farmers were being practically tutored on the merits of intercropping on basic crops like Cotton and Cowpeas cum Legumes, Maize and Melon.

After the inspiring opening speeches by the Chairman of the Foundation. Alhaji Sani Friday Nnaji, who flew in from his Gusau Zamfara base, and remarks by the Enugu State Commissioner for Agriculture, Honorable Matthew Idu and that of  the Secretary of the Board of the Foundation, and also a Member of the Enugu State House of Assembly and Chair person Committee on Agriculture in the House, Mrs Amaka Ugwueze, the workshop livened up.

Ably handled by Agriculturists and Agronomists from the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Professor U C Onugu, Dr Uko Ibeabuchi, Dr Mrs Nma O. Okoroji and  Obianefo A. Chukwujekwu of IFAD Value Chain Development Program (VCDP), Anambra State, the trainee farmers fully engrossed with the various topics lined up for discourse, could not have asked for more, as the roared to go.

In his opening stanza, his paper ‘Agronomics of early Maize/ Melon Intercrop’, Professor Onugu, from Department of Agric. Economics and Extension, Faculty of Agriculture, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, dwelt on the importance of Maize as one of the most vital cereals and  crops cultivated in the country and overseas, emphasising on the need to pay adequate attention to all the necessary agronomic practices in order to ensure good yields.

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Prof Onugu took the participants drawn from the five major Towns that populate Isi-Uzo Local Government area viz; Eha-Amufu, Ikem, Neke, Mbu and Umualo, through a most educating and practical demonstration of the perfect process in order to get abundant harvest at last. They run thus, Selection  bordering on the right soil for optimum yield, Land preparation, Varieties, Planting proper, Fertilizer application, Weed Control, and Recommended Herbicides for control of Weeds in Maize,.

Others include Crop protection, Harvesting, Threshing and Storage. On Melon, Prof Onugu, explained that intercropping Melon with Maize , was highly profitable as the land enjoys favourable soil micro-environment, which increases the rhizophere fungi and bacterial numbers of maize for total crop production.

Since  Melon like Legumes, benefit from treatments applied to their accompanying crops, and Nitrogen being one of the nutrients needed badly for the growth of Melon, it was only saying the obvious that intercropping both crops Maize and Melon, would be achieving a bountiful harvest.

Treating what looked like the thrust of the worship Cotton Cultivation which is Alhaji Sani’s speciality and most avowed attraction,  Dr Uko Ibeabuchi of Department of Crop Science and Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, encouraged the farmers to do a good feasibility study encompassing, prospective buyer and buyers , land, very good seeds, fertilizers, pesticides and labourers to work on the farmlands, insisting that Cotton cultivation is capital and labour intensive.

Since sunlight is key for cultivation, Dr. Ibeabuchi advised that professionals need to be gotten to carry out soil test to ensure that the land supports Cotton growth. The soil for cultivation would be well moist and properly exposed to sunshine as after 15 days, he explained that the Cotton would have fully sprouted. He spoke of the added soil nitrogen benefits of growing Cowpeas alongside Cotton as they cover the grounds quickly thus preventing erosion.

Mr Obianefo Chukwujekwu in his down-to-earth interactive session addressed several issues amongst them were first to have what he dubbed ‘Why I am here into farming’ and encouraged the trainees to have a foremost Agric- business mindset, to go in with a mindset of entrepreneurship, productivity yardstick and benchmark including ensuring that the Farmer does a Memoradum of Understanding MOU, with prospective buyers..

He said since nations of the world  were bound to experience insecurity especially in job losses and unemployment, agriculture would remain the lure and re-emphasised the advantages of maize production which he said hinged on Food Market Staple, Livestock market and Industrial Raw materials.

On her part, Dr Nma Okoroji , Department of Cooperative Economics and Management. Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, who said agriculture was the best way to develop a people and nation, urged the farmers to always form a Cooperative. “It’s a rally point, like the Kenyan Harambe solidarity to push a cause forward. With cooperative, you work together to promote and lift one another. Being in cooperative, you do not pay tax,” she noted.

Dr Nma who is also the National President of Coconut growing Farmers in Nigeria, with Alhaji Sani as her Vice, praised the vision of the Founder of the Foundation for his magnanimity and dexterity in agriculture making his mark in Zamfara, Kaduna and other parts of northern part of the country. She said the farmers in Isi-Uzo were lucky that they have an already made buyer of all their produce, in addition to providing them the seedlings, materials, equipment to cultivate Cotton and even Coconut.

“Am gladdened, Alhaji Sani taught me Cotton, and I modestly taught him Coconut’, Dr Nma Okoroji , explained.

The trainers had since returned to their communities to begin the training of the 1000 rural farmers chosen for this pilot exercise, who are to be provided with seedlings and stipends by Alhaji Sani Friday Nnaji, through the Foundation and would pick up all the proceeds paid for , bearing in mind the market forces and costs at the time of harvesting and selling by the farmers, whose joy know no bounds.

Certificates were given to all the Trainees and Coordinators by the Secretary of the Alhaji Sani Nnaji Foundation. Hon Mrs Amaka Ugwueze, House Committe Chairman Enugu State House of Assembly.