The Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri, has applauded the government of the Republic of South Korea for training 10 officials and directors from the Bayelsa State Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Those involved in the training were the Chief Agricultural Engineer, Chief Agricultural Officer, Chief Livestock Officer (ADP), and the Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Officers.
Others were the Director of Agricultural Services, the Livestock Officer (Veterinary), a representative of the School-To-Land Programme, as well as the Commissioner for Agriculture, Prof Beke Sese.
Aside the intensive capacity building on sustainable agricultural development, which was fully funded by the Korean government under the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), the Asian country also donated two farming tractors to the state government.
The donation was part of its support for the state’s agricultural development initiative and contribution to its food security programme.
Diri, who attended the closing ceremony at the weekend in Seoul, applauded the support of the Korean government.
He particularly expressed gratitude to the immediate past Republic of Korea Ambassador to Nigeria, Kim Young-Chae, for being a true “friend of Bayelsa” and for facilitating the training programme.
He said: “I’m happy that by this capacity building training involving the top echelon of our Ministry of Agriculture, Bayelsa has also benefited from the technological advancement of Korea. I hope and believe they will make positive use of the training and will impart the knowledge acquired back home.
“Let me particularly express our gratitude to a friend of Bayelsa State, Ambassador Kim, who made this training possible. Before he left Nigeria, he also facilitated the shipping of two farming tractors to our state. We are most grateful to him.
“Based on this new relationship, I believe it will be a win-win for Korea, Nigeria, and Bayelsa State. I believe this is the beginning of a relationship that will boost the development of Bayelsa. I have directed my officials to commence discussions with the Jeonbuk State, a self-governing Korean Province, on areas of collaboration.
“I commend the Managing Director of RISTI (Research Institute of Sustainable Technology and Innovation Consulting), all its organs and, of course, KOICA for the fantastic training and the job you have done.
“This is one of the ways to bring unity to the world. We do not need the production of arms and armament, which are shipped to other countries to kill ourselves. Let us instead export knowledge, machines, and products that will benefit mankind and not those that will kill us.”
