More than 200 residents in the South Tongu District have received poultry birds under the Government’s flagship Nkoko Nkitinkiti Initiative, locally known as the Koklovi Programme.

The programme, aims at boosting local poultry production, creating employment opportunities and enhancing household incomes.

The beneficiaries, drawn from the five traditional areas of the district, received the birds at separate distribution ceremonies held at Akato and Sogakope.

Speaking at the events, Mrs Victoria Dzeklo, South Tongu District Chief Executive (DCE), urged beneficiaries to properly manage and nurture the birds to ensure the success of the programme and maximise its economic benefits.

She said the initiative was designed not only to improve livelihoods but also to contribute to national efforts to reduce dependence on imported poultry products and strengthen food security.

Mrs Dzeklo disclosed that the District Assembly, in collaboration with the District Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), would undertake regular monitoring visits to beneficiaries to provide technical support and ensure compliance with recommended poultry management practices.

She explained that although each beneficiary was initially expected to receive 50 birds, they were allocated 35 birds each due to the increased number of beneficiaries and losses recorded among some of the 10,000 birds supplied to the district and housed at Shallom Poultry Farms Limited near Akato.

The DCE noted that most of the birds distributed were layers and stressed the importance of proper feeding, housing and disease control measures to achieve optimum productivity.

She expressed optimism that the programme would empower many young people to venture into commercial poultry farming and create sustainable income-generating opportunities across the district.

The Nkoko Nkitinkiti Initiative is one of the key agricultural intervention programmes introduced by the Government to promote poultry production, generate employment and position Ghana as a major producer and exporter of eggs and poultry products within the West African sub-region and beyond.

Some beneficiaries who spoke to the Ghana News Agency commended the Government for the intervention, describing it as timely and capable of transforming their economic fortunes.

They pledged to adhere to recommended feeding and biosecurity protocols to ensure the birds thrived and the objectives of the programme were achieved.

The distribution exercise was witnessed by Assembly Members, led by the Presiding Member, Mr Mensah Kwaku Kudze, officials of the South Tongu District Assembly and officers from the District Directorate of MOFA.