By Ifeoma Aka
The World Bank-assisted Commercial Agricultural Development Project (CADP) has constructed a 10-kilometre feeder road linking some rural communities in Enugu State, to ease evacuation of agricultural produce.
Mr Onyeme Nwodo, Programme Manager, Enugu State Agricultural Development Programme (ENADEP), the state’s supervisory agency of CADP, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Friday.
Nwodo said that the cost of constructing the road was N91.5 million.
He said the road connected Agu Umunko and Agu Ukehe farm settlements in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of the state and also linked the old Enugu-Makurdi road.
“The road will open up agriculture areas in the state for an anticipated bumper harvest this year.
“The feeder road has been completed but we are going to invite the State Government towards the end of the year for inauguration,” he said.
Nwodo explained that the rural road initiative was in line with the United Nations’ resolution to ensure devotion of 10 per cent of state and local government budgets to agriculture.
He urged the state and local governments to recruit more agricultural extension agents to help sensitise local farmers to increase their yields.
The World-Bank-assisted project in Nigeria is aimed at strengthening agricultural production systems.
It also aims at facilitating access to market for targeted value chains among small and medium scale commercial farmers in the five participating states.
The participating states are Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Enugu, and Cross River.
The value chains are: oil palm, cocoa, fruit trees, poultry, aquaculture and dairy, with maize and rice as staples.
