No fewer than 1,160 persons have benefitted from the various intervention areas of the Livelihood Improvement Family Enterprises (LIFE) project in Cross River, says Mr Innocent Ogbin, the LIFE Cross River Project Coordinator.
Ogbin made the disclosure during a media chat in Calabar on Friday.
While noting that the project was aimed at improving the economy well-being of youths and women, he gave a breakdown of the beneficiaries to include 554 males and 557 females.
Ogbin who disclosed that LIFE intervention areas are Rice, Cassava, Fishery and Poultry, said they were areas that the state has comparative advantage.
He said that through its intervention, rice yield in the state have improved from less than two tonnes per hectare to about 4.5 tonnes per hectare.
Similarly, he said that a total of 18,250 day old birds were distributed to 37 incubates within the last one year that the programme implementation began in the state.
He further said that the project intervention have seen to the construction of 5.7km rural road.
“From the 100 communities, 10 each from 10 Local Government Areas that have been penciled down to benefit from the project, we are presently visible in 52 communities.
“To get it right, we look at the existing culture and structures in the community before intervention. These rural structures are the ones that drives the implementation of the project.
“We are happy with the successes so far recorded even though we are not where we ought to be because we lost a year in the project implementation in Cross River.”
On the sustainability of the project, Ogbin said that it has been worked out by the initiators of the project.
“It is a 12 years project with six years financing gap. While (IFAD) will pull out after six years, NDDC will handle the remaining with the role of the private sector that have been factored in,” he stated.
