The Livelihood Improvement Family Enterprises – Niger Delta (LIFE-ND) Project in Delta says it is targeting no fewer than 10,805 beneficiaries in the Additional Financing(AF) phase in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that LIFE-ND project is sponsored by the Federal Government, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), and the Delta State Government.
The State Project Coordinator, Mr Collins Ashoro, disclosed this to newsmen on Friday in Asaba after visiting the newly profiled incubatees/beneficiaries’ outlets in some local government areas of the state.
Ashoro, represented by Mr Damian Omare, LIFE-ND Knowledge Management and Community Communication Officer, said the project had distributed stocks to the newly inaugurated 630 beneficiaries under its incubation model in the additional financing phase.
He said setting the target for the second phase had become necessary because the project had in the past six years, from 2019 to March 2025, empowered 4,373 beneficiaries which surpassed the target of 4,250 in the project first phase.
Ashoro said: “The LIFE-ND project in Delta state recorded remarkable milestones in youths and women empowerment through agribusiness development.
“Our initial target was to reach 4,250 beneficiaries through the incubation model, but we are proud to report that we have surpassed this goal.
“We successfully trained, mentored, and establishes over 4,373 incubatees across our four key commodities —cassava, fishery, poultry, and oil palm along the value chain of production.
“Building on this success, LIFE-ND project entered its Additional Financing (AF) phase (2025–2028), a three-year scale-up period aimed at consolidating the gains of the first phase while extending project benefits to more communities and beneficiaries.
“Under this AF phase, Delta State targets to support an additional 10,805 beneficiaries, deepen climate-smart agriculture, and promote innovations in value addition, digital inclusion, and sustainable market linkage”.
He said the project had profiled 630 new incubatees and another 2,685 beneficiaries to benefit from business development services in the Additional Financing phase.
“We have successfully screened and selected 630 new incubatees for AF phase, while an additional 2,685 beneficiaries have been identified in 2025 to benefit from Business Development Services (BDS)support under these second phase,” it says.
He said the newly profiled 630 incubatees were selected from 6 local government areas and 42 communities in the state based on specified guidelines in the four product areas; poultry, fish, oil palm and cassava along their value chain.
According to Ashoro, the 630 incubatees have been empowered with fish feeds, medication, juveniles fishes, poultry feed, broiler birds, cassava grinding machine, snap sack spray with chemicals, fertiliser and many more.
In an interview, the beneficiaries lauded the LIFE-ND project for directly impacting them with materials and technical support to build a sustaining livelihood businesses in poultry, fisheries, casava and oil palm value chain in their communities.
Speaking, Mr Louis Osogbue, LIFE-ND Desk Officer, Ndokwa West Local Government Area of the state, said the project has adequately engage the youths and women of the community in gainful business in oil palm, Cassava, fisheries and poultry value chain.
According to him, over 500 youths and women have been impacted in the area of financial, food security and jobs creation which has ensured the reduction in youths restiveness have drastically reduced.
He noted that the youth were initially not interested in the project but in the recent times with visible impacts on the beneficiaries, their interest in the project have been outstanding.
He thanked the LIFE-ND project and its sponsors for their support and the youths for taken up the programmes seriously.
“Today the beneficiaries who started as incubatees have elevated to incubators and their business expanding daily,” Osogbue said.
Incubatees from Umusam, Ndokwa West LGA, testified that the project had directly empowered them with poultry feeds, chicks, fingerlings and corresponding fish feeds to last from day one to finishing; tools; equipment; and contacts for marketing the products.
According to 25-year-old Miss Anita Okoghene, and Blessing Uduji – 24, LIFE-ND project provided fishing tappoling, 500 juveniles and 29 bags of different sizes of feed to starter and finish the production for marketing.
Also, Chioma Onwuka, 23, and Joy Asata, 25, said thamey received 100-day-old chicks with 20 bags of assorted poultry feeds each to cover from start to finish from LIFE-ND project.
Incubatees from Agbarho Shell Farm, Ughelli North LGA ; Mrs Emuesiri Ikpesu, Mrs Ejiro Okunima, both fish farmers testified receiving training, equipment, juveniles and 29 bags of feeds each from the project.
In their separate testimonies, Mrs Francisca Okpologbe and Mrs Angela Ovuakpoaye, incubatees of the project, said they received birds, feeds and all the support needed to grow their poultry businesses at Okulo community, Okpe LGA in the state.
The beneficiaries thanked the LIFE-ND project and pledge to sustain their businesses by re-stocking to ensure financial stability and sustainability.
They urged other youths to explore successive opportunities in the additional financing phase being rolled out by LIFE-ND in the state to build a sustaining livelihood.
