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.
