Victoria Mgbanwa
Rivers State has launched a renewed agricultural initiative as the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) expand their $90 million livelihood program to 46 additional communities.
The programme, which follows a traditional master-apprentice model, is designed to reduce unemployment and boost rural economies by turning agribusiness into a viable path for income and self-reliance.
LIFE-ND, jointly funded by IFAD and the NDDC, seeks to equip thousands of young people and women with the skills and resources needed to thrive in agriculture. IFAD initially injected $60 million into the project, launched in 2019, while the NDDC’s recent $30 million funding has now brought Rivers, Imo, and Akwa Ibom into the fold.
JD Horsfall, Agric Business Promotions Officer for LIFE-ND in Rivers State, said the current sensitisation represents the second batch of beneficiary engagement in the state. “For this past week, we sensitised 46 communities as part of the second batch. The first batch covered 20 communities across five pioneer LGAs, and those beneficiaries are already undergoing training at the incubation centres,” he explained.
The new communities span three additional LGAs, bringing the total to eight, as the programme scales its reach within the state. Though turnout at sensitisation events was modest due to short notice, Horsfall noted that communities were directly engaged and equipped with posters detailing the project and inviting interested trainers (incubators) and trainees (incubatees).
“We dropped three sets of posters in every community one explaining the project, another calling for trainers (incubators), and the last calling for interested trainees (incubatees) in cassava, poultry, plantain and aquaculture,” he added.
The LIFE-ND project employs an incubation model rooted in Nigeria’s indigenous knowledge system, pairing experienced agro-entrepreneurs with aspiring farmers. The approach supports sustainable value chains while fostering mentorship, food security, and self-sustaining employment.
As Rivers, Imo, and Akwa Ibom enter the early implementation stage, other states already participating in LIFE-ND have advanced to deeper phases. The next step for Rivers involves validating training facilities and selecting final participants who will drive a new era of agribusiness in the Niger Delta.
With a target of 38,250 beneficiaries across nine oil-producing states, LIFE-ND stands as a major rural transformation agenda under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, implemented in partnership with IFAD and the NDDC.
