A beneficiary of Green YAGEP trained and established in Fish Production in the 2019/2020 Job Creation Cycle has lauded the Delta State Government for making her dream to come true.
The beneficiary made the commendation when she received the second tranche of fish feeds from the officials of the Delta State Job and Wealth Creation Bureau at her fish farms in Udu.
The distribution of fish feed was carried out in continuation of the State Government’s commitment to encourage unemployed youths to go into agriculture and to boost food security in the state through Green YAGEP.
Green YAGEP is one of the Delta State Government’s job creation programmes under the Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme. It refers to YAGEP candidates who are newcomers to agricultural skills and desire to be trained from afresh and established with starter packs to own and run their enterprises.
Receiving the fish feeds at Okolor Inland in Udu Local Government Area, the location of her farm, Joy Torere, expressed her gratitude to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for the training she received and for establishing her in her choice agricultural enterprise, Fish production under the Green YAGEP.
She affirmed she has received 55 bags of fish feeds of various sizes, 2mm, 3mm and 4mm out of the 120 bags she is entitled to receive, expressing confidence that the remaining 65 bags would be delivered to her in due course when her fish mature to the point when they can eat 6mm and 9mm fish feeds.
She listed her establishment package to include 6 months training, monthly stipend, three 13 X 13 X 4 feet polygon tarpaulin fish tanks, 1,500 juveniles, a solid basement for the tanks, a roof to house the tanks and 120 bags of feeds to grow the fish to maturity.
Hear her, “Training began before the lockdown. After the lockdown, we resumed and we trained for six months. It wasn’t easy, but I scaled through. I was amazed when the contractor called me to show him my site. I did and went back to training. I wasn’t expecting all these. They built the roof, the basement for 3 tarpaulin tanks, stocked it with fish and gave me quality feeds of different sizes to grow the fish to table size. This government is good. I didn’t know I will receive the establishment package as soon as I completed training. I am grateful. Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has made my dream of becoming a fish farmer to come true.”
Joy Torere studied Agricultural Science Education at the Delta State University, Abraka and has been unemployed since five years until she got enrolled in the State Government’s YAGEP.
“With all these, I am not thinking of any other job. I can’t even manage this alone. With time, I need to engage the services of other youths to assist me,” she enthused.
The YAGEP Coordinator in the Delta State Job and Wealth Creation Bureau, Mr Sam Ndikanwu, reaffirmed she received 120 bags of fish feeds to take the fish to table size, giving the credit to the State Governor who provided all the resources to construct the basement, the roof, the tarpaulin tanks among others.
Reacting on the impact of YAGEP on the economy of the state, a Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Job Creation, Mr Frank Ebikefe, stated that the YAGEPreneurs cut across the 25 local government areas of the state.
He said their output in terms of their farm produce would ensure food security and drive down the prices of food items and provide income for the farmers, stressing that if well sustained it would make Delta State to compete favourably well in the agricultural sector.
By Gertrude Onyekachukwu-Uteh