By Gertrude Onyekachukwu-Uteh
NNEKA OKONJO, from Aniocha South Local Government Area, has a Higher National Diploma in Agricultural Science from the Delta State Polytechnic, Ozoro, now Delta State University of Science and Technology. As one of the pioneers of the State Government’s Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme (YAGEP,) Nneka was trained and established in the 2015/2016 YAGEP Cycle with 400 point of lay birds, 200 broilers, 150 bags of bird feeds, a poultry pen with battery cages and other items.
Since establishment, she has grown to become self-reliant, an employer, a trainer and a seasoned poultry farmer. Six years after, she shares her story.
“Poultry business though very challenging is very lucrative. I have done so many cycles. I have gained experience by doing same thing over and over again. For broilers, I brood six to seven cycles yearly. I currently have five hundred layers which I brooded myself. I no longer buy point of lay birds, rather I do it myself.
“Through Poultry business, I helped my mother to complete her building project as a retiree. She lives there now. I have also been able to acquire two plots of land, each measuring 100 X 100 feet. I am now married and I contribute to the upkeep of my home.
“I have also diversified into crop production, maize, cassava and vegetable farming. I have an employee. The programme made me meaningfully engaged; otherwise, I would have been in the unemployment market.”
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