As part of its community outreach programme, the Department of Agriculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Alex- Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu -Alike, Ebonyi State, has trained local rice farmers within the University host community on rice pests control techniques.
The capacity building programme which was held on 5thDecember, 2022, at Ndiechi Community in Ikwo Local Government Area, also addressed many other relevant issues affecting rice farming.
The idea of the university outreach program was to extend helping hands to local communities on how to improve and control the various challenges they face in farming.
The outreach programme is also geared towards fulfilling one of the core mandates of the University which is community service. Through that, students of Agriculture are expected to acquire hands-on skills in different fields of Agriculture.


Speaking during the programme, the Head, Department, of Agricultural Economics/ Extension, Dr. Michael Olaolu noted that the outreach was purely to educate rice farmers in the local communities and also to build cordial relationships between the university and its host community.

He maintained that the programme was also to proffer solutions to the problems confronting rice farmers, adding that, it also helps the students to share their ideas with the community as part of its 4th year courses that every student in the faculty of Agriculture must undergo.


While speaking, Kalu Samuel, a 400-level student of the faculty educated the farmers on the issues affecting rice farming and the control of rice pests. He noted that rice is a major food in the world and an important source of employment in rural areas.

He added that rice production needs to be increased more to meet the growing food demand in the country, adding that the major challenges of rice farming include poor spacing during planting, climate change, too much fertilizer and rain. He further said that the solution to the problems include mass literacy to educate farmers more on how to measure fertilizers and practice crop rotation and how to use decomposed manure more in rice farming to give good yields.



Other resource persons that provided answers to some of the challenges facing the farmers were Dr.Emeka Osuji from Department of Agricultural Economics/Extension and Mr. Emeka Chidiebere of Crop Science.

Highlight of the programme was a cultural dance and drama presented by 400 level students of the faculty to pass important messages to the villagers on the theme of the outreach- containment of rice pests.