The Gombe State Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support (L-PRES) Project has organized a one-day workshop to train 168 farmers on financial management, business planning, and cooperative governance to strengthen cooperative management practices.

 

In his opening remarks, the Project Coordinator, Gombe L-PRES, Professor Usman Bello Abubakar, explained that the training aimed to enhance participants’ financial management skills, enabling them to apply fundamental financial principles to the livestock value chain.

 

The workshop also focused on developing basic business plans that outline cooperatives’ goals, strategies, and financial projections within the livestock sector. Additionally, participants gained insights into the core principles of cooperative governance, including democratic member participation, transparency, and accountability.

 

The program which was held at Abmar Hall, opposite FTH Gombe pulled participants from diary farmers cooperative societies facilitated by L-PRES as well as livestock extension workers across the 11 LGAs of the state.

 

The program brought together 168 participants from 11 LGAs. These participants included three representative each from dairy farmer cooperative societies facilitated by L-PRES, as well as livestock extension workers.

 

Prof Abubakar emphasized that the 55 cooperative societies established by L-PRES are instrumental in executing the project’s activities, hence the need to train them on relevant financial and leadership skills to ensure effective and efficient implementation.

 

The Project Coordinator, Professor Usman Bello Abubakar, commended Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya for his unwavering support in modernizing the livestock sector. He stated, “The Governor’s commitment to transforming the sector has been instrumental in the success of our initiatives.”

 

Declaring the workshop open, the Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, and Cooperatives, Gombe State, reiterated the government’s commitment to supporting the livestock subsector to stimulate economic growth and development.

 

Represented by the permanent Secretary of the ministry, Alh. Muhammad Ibrahim Jalo, the commissioner urged participants to leverage the L-PRES Project to upgrade and modernize their livestock businesses for increased productivity and profitability.

 

In their separate remarks, Yahaya Modibbo, Chairman of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, Ardo Cindo Abubakar, Chairman of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, and Ahmad Bello, State Chairman of Jonde Jam, expressed their gratitude to L-PRES for organizing the workshop. They assured to apply the acquired knowledge to improve their livestock businesses.

 

The event featured scholarly presentations from resource persons, followed by a question-and-answer session with participants.