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By Gloria Ikibah

The South East Development Commission (SEDC) has flagged off its South East Agro-Development Programme with the commencement of a 200-hectare integrated model farm in Nomeh Unataeze, Nkanu East Local Government Area of Enugu State.

The pilot project, being implemented in partnership with the Enugu State Government, is designed to boost food production, create jobs, develop agricultural skills, support smallholder farmers and strengthen agro-value chains across the South East.

At full maturity, the farm is projected to support more than 1,000 direct jobs, with additional employment expected through seasonal agricultural activities and its wider out-grower network.

The project brings together dairy, poultry, fisheries, fodder production, greenhouse farming, processing, mechanisation, renewable energy and practical agricultural training in one integrated facility.

The model provides for a 200-head dairy herd and poultry production of up to 20,000 birds per cycle, alongside fisheries infrastructure, extensive fodder cultivation, silage production and processing facilities.

Speaking at the flag-off, the Deputy Governor of Enugu State, Barrister Ifeanyi Ossai, who represented Governor Peter Mbah, described the project as an example of what strategic collaboration between government institutions could achieve.

He said: “The development of this agricultural facility in Nomeh demonstrates what is possible when government institutions work together around a clear development objective. Enugu State is committed to creating the conditions for productive investment, and we are pleased to partner with SEDC on a project that will not only produce food, but also create jobs, develop skills, support farmers and strengthen the agricultural value chain. We believe this project can become an important part of the economic development of Nkanu East, Enugu State and the entire South East region within the context of Nigeria.”

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of SEDC, Mark Okoye, said the initiative was designed to demonstrate a more integrated approach to agriculture in the region.

Okoye said the project’s success would ultimately be measured by the opportunities it creates beyond the 200-hectare site.

“The South East Agro-Development Programme is about building productive capacity of the region. We want to demonstrate what agriculture can look like when land, technology, mechanisation, production, processing, training and markets are brought together in one system.

“The real impact is what happens around the farm and beyond the farm. It is the young person who acquires a practical skill here and starts a farm elsewhere, the farmer who supplies maize or soya to the feed mill, the dairy farmer who gets technical support and access to a reliable market, and the smallholder farmer who is able to increase production because the ecosystem around them has improved”, he said.

The project includes a training centre expected to accommodate between 100 and 120 trainees at a time, offering practical training in dairy husbandry, fodder and silage production, poultry, fisheries and farm mechanisation.

Its out-grower programme is expected to initially involve about 300 households within a 10-kilometre radius of the farm. Participating farmers will have access to inputs, technical assistance and mechanisation services, while the farm will provide aggregation and market opportunities.

Speaking on behalf of the Federal Government, the Minister of Regional Development, Abubakar Momoh, said the project represented the type of productive regional development the government wanted to promote.

“Today is significant because it represents something bigger than the commencement of an agricultural project. It represents the kind of development the Federal Government is seeking to promote across Nigeria: development that is productive, inclusive, regionally balanced and capable of creating opportunities for our people”, he stated.

Momoh said food security required more than simply expanding cultivated land, stressing the need to build an agricultural system that connects production with processing, markets and improved incomes.

“The objective is not simply to produce more food. We must build an agricultural system that is productive, resilient and capable of creating value across the entire chain. We must produce. We must process. We must create markets. We must reduce post-harvest losses. We must improve productivity and incomes. And we must create opportunities for young Nigerians to participate meaningfully in modern agriculture”, the minister said.

The Chairman of SEDC, Dr Emeka Wogu, said the project would help translate the Commission’s regional development mandate into practical interventions.

“Regional development requires partnership. The Commission cannot and should not work in isolation from the state governments, communities, the private sector and development partners. Our responsibility is to create platforms that connect these stakeholders around opportunities that can generate sustainable economic value for the people of the South East”, he said.

Okoye said the Nomeh facility would serve as a pilot for similar agricultural and mechanisation interventions across the five South East states.

“Nomeh is the starting point. This is a pilot. We want to learn from what we build here, document what works, improve what does not, and replicate the model across the South East in line with our mandate”, he noted.

The President-General of Nomeh Unataeze, Dr Chukwudi Anyianuka, welcomed the project on behalf of the host community and pledged its cooperation.

“We welcome this project because we see it as an investment in the future of Nomeh and our people. Our community understands that a project of this scale requires cooperation, responsibility and a shared commitment to its success. We are ready to work with SEDC, the Enugu State Government and all the partners involved to ensure that the project delivers the opportunities that our young people, farmers and community deserve”, he said.

The Commission said the project was intended to serve as more than a farm, describing it as a platform for food security, enterprise development, employment, skills acquisition and regional economic growth.

The initiative is part of SEDC’s broader agro-development and mechanisation strategy and is expected to provide a practical template for agricultural interventions across Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo states.

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The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Board of Trustees (BoT) has urged the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, to continue to be steadfast and focused, adding that the party and its members are proud of him.

The PDP BoT members, who were in the Minister’s residence in Abuja on Tuesday evening, to condole with him over the death of the party’s National Vice Chairman (South South), Chief Dan Orbih, described his (Dan Orbih) death as shocking and painful to the party, particularly members of the BoT.

The BoT delegation led by its Chairman, Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, also had Senator Zainab Kure, former Minister of Sports, Hon Damishi Sango, the BoT Secretary, Isah Dansidi, among others.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the BoT Chairman said; “These are select few members of the Board of Trustees of the People’s Democratic Party of Nigeria. You know that the BoT has over 100 members, but because of the shortness of the time, we had to pick those that are within the FCT vicinity. And in this selection, we made sure that all the geopolitical zones are represented.

“We came here purely for two major reasons. To condole with and console our National Leader, Barr. Nyesom Wike, on the demise of one of our great members, a pillar of the party, a consistent member of the party, Chief Dan Orbih, who was also a member of the Board of Trustees and the National Vice Chairman (South South) of our party.

“The news of his demise was shocking and painful to us. He was not only a committed party member, he was a very close associate of our national leader. And like one of us, Chief Sango said earlier, when he was praying, Chief Dan Orbih was one of our political generals and close associates of our national leader, the honorable minister.

“So we’ve come to condole with him and console him and he has accepted to take our message to the Orbih family.

“Also, we are here to solidarize with him, encourage him and tell him to remain focused. Because everything he’s been saying about the party is nothing but the truth.

“When he was offered this appointment, he wrote the party at all levels and the party unanimously accepted and asked him to go and represent the party. And we want to boldly say that as a party and as the conscience of the party and also the compass of this party, we are very very proud of him. Proud of him as a person, proud of him in performance, proud of his capacity.”

Earlier, the FCT Minister had thanked the PDP BoT members for the visit, reiterating his assurance that he will remain in the party and work with others to rebuild it.

He described the death of Chief Dan Orbih as a lost too irreparable, disclosing that the deceased played a very important role in his emergence as Governor of Rivers State in 2015.

Wike said; “God used Dan Orbih to make me a governor. He was the Chairman of PDP in Edo State at that time and there was a crisis in Rivers State PDP. He chose to stand by the truth and that’s how I became governor. It’s unfortunate that he died and there is nothing any of us can do about it.

“Therefore, I thank you all for coming to identify with me. Most importantly, the loss is also your loss because he was part of you.”

On the 2027 elections, the FCT Minister reiterated his commitment to President Bola Tinubu’s reelection, urging the members and supporters of the PDP to focus more attention on other elections.

“After supporting President Tinubu in 2023, it will be wrong of me to support another person to face him when he is seeking reelection, and I have made this clear before now. But that should not prevent the PDP from contesting elections at the subnational levels,” Wike said.

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The Institute of Security and Strategic Studies (ISSS) has conferred its 2026 Outstanding Member Award on Dr. Olotu Akpodiete, Executive Director of the Olotu & Ekuogbe Rowland Akpodiete Foundation, in recognition of his outstanding academic and professional standing and his commitment to promoting the highest world standards in Security Management.

The award was presented at the 1st Annual ISSS Security Conference 2026 held in Abuja with the theme: _“Building a Resilient National Security Ecosystem: Innovation, Intelligence, and Community Partnership for a Safer Nigeria.”_

The high-level conference was chaired by Major General Garba Audu (Rtd), who delivered the welcome address. The keynote address was delivered by former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa (Rtd) OFR, Honourable Minister of Defence. Other lead speakers at the event included Dr. Bello Abdullahi, Ms. Patricia Eromosele, Amb. Ken Nwachukwu and Dr. Stephen Olori.

Dr. Akpodiete was honoured alongside other distinguished awardees including His Excellency, Dr. Agbu Kefas, Executive Governor of Taraba State; Sir Chikwe Udenisi; Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote; Captain Michael Sunday Ige and Barr. Chamberlain Asuoha.

Responding after receiving the award, Dr. Akpodiete appreciated the Institute for the honour, noting that the recognition would further motivate him to continue contributing to the development of security management in Nigeria.

Through the Olotu & Ekuogbe Rowland Akpodiete Foundation, Dr. Akpodiete has been a leading advocate for security development and peace-building in Delta State. His interventions include the Security and Safety Education Project in public schools, Memorial Lectures on Conflict Resolution and Community Safety and Security, and the establishment of Neighborhood Watch structures in Delta State.

The Foundation has also donated security communication gadgets to community leaders and vigilante groups and has been at the forefront of advocacy for the creation of a Ministry of Security to strengthen the state security framework.