By Felicia Imohimi

Stakeholders in Nigeria’s agriculture sector have urged the federal and state governments to prioritise capacity building for youth and women in agriculture on modern technology and innovations.

The stakeholders, who spoke at the National Agriculture Show “Youth and Women in Agriculture Seminar’’ on Friday in Nasarawa, said such empowerment was key in achieving the presidential declaration of emergency on food security.

The theme of the seminar is “Enhancing the Capacity of Women and Youth towards Realising the Presidential declaration on Food Security Emergency in Nigeria.’’

Perpetual Okafor, acting Chairperson, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), FCT Chapter, identified capacity building for youth and women in agriculture as a necessity move that should not be taking for granted.

Okafor advised against overlooking the importance of technology in current agricultural practices adding that there was need to embrace some agricultural technology such as cyber-extension, among others.

She said embracing such would assist the country to address the issues of climate change and security challenges in the country.

“To ensure the involvement of youth and women in all areas of agriculture, there is need to encourage them to participate actively towards the achievement or attainment of food security in Nigeria.

“This will best be done by ensuring that agricultural activities are made attractive and agriculture to be seen as a good venture and lucrative business hence it is referred to as agribusiness.

“Let us make haste to enable us bridge the gap between the causes that led to this challenges that brought about declaration of emergency on food security.

“I implore Nigeria government not to allow this declaration to be politicised but to ensure all that are needed to achieve food and nutrition-secure nation are put in place possibly within the first tenure of their office,’’ she said.

Mrs Ifeoma Anyawu, Head of Gender, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, said government should invest in policies and practices that provided access to land, credit and banking services, education and knowledge as well as technical skills for youth and women.

According to her, the number of young people of working age is increasing while this same group typically rejects careers in the agriculture and food system.

She, however, said that the country could reverse the trend and cultivate the next generation of agricultural leaders not just farmers but food entrepreneurs, scientists, agronomists, extension agents, union and government leaders.

Anyawu said the seminar was to re-awaken the conscience of Nigeria to adopt good agronomic practices, raise awareness on some key challenges that women and youth are facing.

She listed some of the challenges as limited or lack access to credit, land, security challenge, educational opportunities and gender discrimination, no proper training to improve their farming methods.

Mrs Nkiruka Okonkwo, Chief Executive Officer, Fresh and Young Brains Development Initiative, said that theme identified four pillars of food security as availability, access, utilisation and stability.

Okonkwo, who identified women and youth as critical stakeholders in achieving food security, said it was necessary to enhance their capacities to contribute to the realisation of the declaration on food security emergency.

“Building the capacity of women and youth on gender-responsive budgeting, value chain development, climate resilient and nutrition-sensitive agriculture, access to finance, technology and markets are pivotal in addressing key challenges faced by them.

“I recommend that government should undertake an urgent needs assessment to ascertain the food security challenges of women and youth at all levels in the country and possible actions to address them,” she said.

The seminar featured a panel discussion on challenges and way forward on the achievement of the presidential declaration on state of emergency on food security in Nigeria.

The panelists were drawn from the Federal Government-International Fund for Agricultural Development-Value Chain Development Programme (FG/IFAD-VCDP), FG/IFAD-Livelihoods Improvement Family Enterprises Project in Niger Delta (LIFE-ND).

Others included Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, ActionAid Nigeria, Smallholder Women Farmers Organisation of Nigeria (SWOFON), AFAN, Ministry of Youth Development, Nigeria Agribusiness Group and Youth in Agriculture.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chijioke Okoronkwo

By Felicia Imohimi

A coalition under the aegis of Small Scale Women Farmers Organisation of Nigeria (SWOFON) has urged federal, state and local governments to allocate resources for the implementation of the National Gender Policy on Agriculture.

The National President of SWOFON, Fatima Bello, made the call at the 2023 National Agriculture Show “Youth and Women in Agriculture Seminar on Friday in Nasarawa State.

The seminar has the theme “Enhancing the Capacity of Youth and Women towards Realising the Presidential Declaration on Food Security Emergency in Nigeria.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that SWOFON is a coalition of women farmers associations and groups across the country.

Bello recommended that the agriculture budgets of governments at all levels should be gender sensitive and responsive by providing items for the implementation of the policy.

She explained that the gender policy on agriculture addressed specific challenges that affected women farmers differently from men as well as avoid lumping up budget for women farmers and youths.

The president called on all tiers of government to invest in agroecology to build the capacity of smallholder women farmers on climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and make provision for organic inputs such as fertilisers and pest control.

Bello identified smallholder women farmers as accounting for 70 per cent of the country’s agricultural workforce and contributing to 70 per cent of the food production.

She, however, said that in spite of their crucial role in the sector, it encountered significant challenges ranging from limited access to land, inputs, credit, trainings, storage and processing facilities, labour, saving technology and post-harvest losses.

Other challenges, according to her, are insecurity, climate change and lack of access to agricultural insurance services.

“Federal and state ministries of agriculture should create a yearly strengthening access to credit, budget line which should focus on getting consultants or consultancy firms to support women, youths and farmers living with disability cooperatives.

“This will enable the farmers to navigate the too cumbersome access to credit in the country.

“A consultancy firm will handhold the cooperatives to access existing CBN agricultural credit facilities through preparing their business proposals, interfacing and negotiating with Bank of Agriculture, Bank of Industry and other financial and microfinance banks.

“The firm will also ensure that the cooperatives access such facilities and other services like insurance, extension and market and they are able to pay back at the end of each circle,” Bello said.

The president appealed to governments to address gender-based discrimination regarding access, control over land and participation in land governance.

She recommended that federal and states ministries of agriculture organise town hall meetings with traditional and religious leaders persuading them to give cooperative lands to smallholder farmers to increase their access and control for increased productivity.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chijioke Okoronkwo

By Sani Idris

Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), on Wednesday launched an agro-processing centre in Sabon Gari Kahuta, Kauru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, where it forecasted to generate N182,9 million revenue in the first fiscal year.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the Kahuta Multipurpose Processing Venture is an agro- processing centre established as a critical component of the AGRA intervention programme.

The intervention project is tilled: “Enhancing resilience and upscaling of gender inclusive rural economy for increased productivity, livelihoods, and food security.

It is aimed at increasing productivity for 50,000 smallholder women and youths’ farmers, strengthening access to output markets at scale, increasing the capacity of smallholder farming households and value chain actors to better prepare, adapt to shocks and stresses.

The project is being implemented by a consortium coined the AGRA Gender Consortium made up of Value Seeds Limited (VSL) the lead partner of the project with core delivery on production.

Palm Valley Nigeria Limited (PVNL), a member of the consortium, is in charge of implementing the value addition, enterprise development and financial inclusion section, and Legal Awareness for Nigeria Women (LANW) on the advocacy
component.

Speaking to NAN at the event, the Country Director for AGRA in Nigeria, Mr Rufus Idris, said they were focused on contributing to the progress and sustenance of the inclusive food system transformation happening in the country.

He added that AGRA, Nigeria was poised to ensure accelerated income for smallholder farmers and the public to have access to affordable and nutritious food.

In doing that, he said, it goes beyond supporting the productivity level which they were doing in terms of helping farmers access seeds, knowledge, finance and working with the Government to ensure enabling policies.

Idris, however, said that Nigerians experience a lot of post-harvest losses, which informed the establishment of the agro- processing centre in Kahuta to enable the women to add value to what they are producing.

“It will enable them to add value to what they are producing. Doing so will increase their income, access a better market that will pay them a premium share of the cost of their produce and help reduce post-harvest losses in the country.

“We ultimately believe that in empowering women, youths and farmers in different areas in the country should take ownership of the whole process of their farm produce from harvests,” he said.

Speaking further, Idris said that situating the agro-processing centre in Kauru was because the farmers there have the comparative advantage of producing rice and maize.

He added that AGRA has been working with the community since 2022 in various areas in enhancing agriculture.

“The women there also operated a savings scheme to raise money to attract financing, we saw the commitment and willingness in them to make sure this happened.

“The processing centre is not purely an AGRA funded project, they also brought in their equity commission to make it work.,” Idris said.

According to the Country Director, if Nigeria could address hunger and poverty issues, it could impact sub-Saharan Africa, where farming could be the ultimate lead.

He expressed optimism that the project would be sustained, adding that the women underwent training in farming, entrepreneurship and how to manage businesses, financial literacy training among others.

Also, Dr Esther Ibrahim, the Programme Officer for AGRA in Kaduna, explained that the women in Kahuta, were hitherto operating a welfare group.

She said, “They were making contributions for ceremonies, and they embraced Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA) as soon as it was introduced.”

Ibrahim, who doubles as the Programme Officer overseeing AGRA’s gender consortium intervention in Nigeria, said the women received training on operation and management of VSLA.

She stated that seven groups of 25 members were formed, registered, and linked to financial institutions.

Ibrahim commended the women for their resilience, time, cooperation, and their resources in ensuring that the project was done.

She called on the state government to replicate the project with other LGAs in the state to guarantee food security and ensure self-reliance of the youths and women.

Also, Project Manager of Palm Valley Nigeria Limited (PVNL), Mr Philip Kachina, said that the Kahuta multipurpose processing venture was being managed by a carefully selected and employed team.

He added that the management would be responsible for setting and meeting up targets on a monthly, quarterly, and yearly basis, where the day-to-day operations of the organisation will be the responsibility of the cooperating associations.

“This team shall develop products based on the exigency of time, design and set procedures for timely/quality service delivery, effective control of operations, and coordinate all activities carried out by the organization to ensure profitability and sustained growth,” he said.

Kachina also said that like every other business, the agro-processing centre was established to generate income via rice parboiling and milling services, sales of milled rice and packaged byproducts.

Other services are rice de-stoning and polishing services, storage facilities, maize milling services, and revenue through sales of rice husk (briquettes) and a composite of waste to renewable energy.

“The Kahuta multipurpose processing venture is forecast to generate income from those sources because of its strategic location, high performing equipment, well trained managers, and friendly pricing regime.

“The enterprise is projected on all factors being equal such as stable economic growth and strong competitors offering the same services and products with the same location to generate N182.9 million (USD234,448.72) in the first fiscal year,” Kachina said.

Speaking on behalf of the women, Mrs Paulina Emmanuel, said women in local communities were now taking up the burden of households and family responsibilities.

She, therefore, pledged that the project, which was achieved through their support and resilience, would not be left abandoned.

Emmanuel thanked AGRA and all the critical stakeholders who ensured the realisation of the project.

NAN reports that the event had in attendance the representatives of the Emir of Kauru and LGA Chairman, the Kaduna Agriculture Development Agency (KADA), Value Seed Limited and Legal Awareness for Nigerian Women (LANW), among other key stakeholders. (NAN)

Edited by Bashir Rabe Mani

By Jacinta Nwachukwu

The Bank of Agriculture (BOA) has presented N2.3 million cheques to four civil servants under the Agripreneurship Scheme of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

The Managing Director, BOA, Alhaji Alwan Hassan, disclosed this at the symbolic presentation of BOA Agriculture Credit Facility cheques to the beneficiaries on Thursday in Abuja.

Hassan said the initiative was in line with the bank’s Agriculture Credit Facility aimed at empowering civil servants through repayment loans of nine per cent interest rate.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the four beneficiaries were given repayment loans of N1 million, N500,000, while two received N400,000 each.

He explained that the beneficiaries were selected based on some criteria ranging from their salary net, retirement period among others.

Hassan further said that the four beneficiaries were the first batch of the initiative, saying that the management would try to improve on the challenges experienced during the programme.

He advised civil servants not to wait until after retirement before they go into agriculture business.

Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation said that the initiative aligned with the president Bola Tinubu Renewed Hope Agenda to enable retirees to cope with life after retirement.

According to Yemi-Esan, 87 civil servants participated but only four were successful.

“This laudable initiative focuses specifically on a value proposition as a veritable instrument to enhance the welfare and well-being of civil servants for high-yield performance.

“This programme also creates a window for those in service to earn supplemental income and agriculture is one of the areas we are allowed to go into,’’ she said.

Yemi-Esan also said that the programme was packaged based on tripartite arrangement by the office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, the Public Service Institute of Nigeria (PSIN) and the Bank of Agriculture.

“Office of HoS coordinates the programme, PSIN handles the theoretical components while BOA provides credit facility to eligible participants at the end of training for business start up,’’ she added.

Yemi-Esan while congratulating the beneficiaries urged them to use the facility judiciously so as to enjoy more.

On his part, the Chairman, Association and Joint Union Negotiation Council, Mr Sylvester Ameh thanked
Yemi-Esan for her support and doggedness in achieving the targeted goal.

Ameh said that the initiative was a welcome development, and appealed to the management of BOA to make the facility more accessible to many civil servants.

He said that the initiative would encourage civil servants to put more efforts in their work.

On behalf of the beneficiaries, Mrs Eunice Tinko, a Level 13 officer thanked the service for the opportunity and said that the loan would help her start up fishery farming. (NAN)(www.nannews.com.ng)

==========
Edited by Razak Owolabi

By Bukola Adewumi

Stakeholders in the agricultural value chain convened in Abuja to discuss the new Federal Government policy on agricultural extension services.

The summit aimed to chart the way forward and develop strategies for enhancing extension service delivery in Nigeria.

The Executive Director of Women Farmers Advancement Network (WOFAN), Hajia Salamatu Garba, emphasised the importance of understanding and successfully implementing the policy at all levels.

The new policy is designed to empower farmers with rights and opportunities, contributing to food security in Nigeria.

WOFAN, in collaboration with Mastercard Foundation’s ‘Young Africa Works’ strategy, aims to uplift the lives of 627,000 people through the WOFAN-ICON2 project over five years.

The project focuses on improving extension services and involving the private sector to complement government efforts in addressing challenges in agriculture.

The strategy, she said, was aimed at enabling 30 million young people in Africa, especially young women, to secure employment they considered as dignified and fulfilling.

As part of YAW strategy, Garba said that the foundation would deepen its engagement in uplifting the living conditions of ultra poor people, including the physically- challenged.

The Business Manager of WOFAN, Mr Taiwo Olawale, said the foundation’s vision of uplifting the status of the people and giving them a sustainable capacity that would make them live a fulfilled life on their own aligned with WOFAN’s business model.

“At present, there is an estimated one extension worker to about 10,000 farmers in Nigeria, but with WOFAN ICON2 project, it is one extension worker to 15 groups, and each group is made up of 30 people”.

The Chairman, WOFAN Technical Advisory Board on Policy Change and Advisory Services, Prof. Sani Miko, said that funding was critical in the area of extension services, urging the private sector to complement government efforts.

“We need to key in the private sector to tackle that opportunity and the resources to compliment the government effort,” he said.

Executive Director, National Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS), Prof. Emmanuel Ikani, underscored the significance of the policy in coordinating and regulating extension services.

He proposed the use of ICT to enhance outreach and communication with farmers. (NAN) www.nannews.ng

Edited by ‘Wale Sadeeq

By Doris Esa

The Federal Government on Monday in Abuja, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with John Deere, Asia (Singapore) Ltd. on agricultural mechanisation to enhance food security.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that John Deere Ltd. is a tractor manufacturing company.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari said the partnership would enhance Nigerian farmers access to affordable inputs.

“This is purely a partnership for the off take for the farmers not the government off taking.

”What the government is supposed to do is to have an environment that is very conducive for John Deere to sell the tractors to the farmers,” he said.

He said that the local production target is 2,000 tractors yearly to boost food production.

”The minimum is 2,000 tractors per year for five years as the demand increases,” he said.

According to him, Nigeria is grossly under mechanised, saying that a country with 70 million hectares of land is grossly inadequate.

In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr Ernest Umakhihe described the MoU as a plus for the agricultural sector.

”They (company) have purposed to invest in Nigeria to produce tractors for our farmers,” he said.

Earlier, the Vice-President of John Deere Ltd. Mr Jason Braintley said the partnership was critical for raising yield and food security as well as raising farm incomes.

”So we’re very excited about that. We’re looking forward to take it to the next step as we move to implementation,” he said.

Braintley said that the company has been active in Nigeria for decades, saying ”we’ve got tractors running all the way from North to South”.

In a related development, Kyari said the Agriculture and Food Security Summit, and the National Council on Agriculture and Food Security meeting  scheduled to hold in November has been postponed.

He announced this to newsmen at the end of the signing of the MoU between the ministry and John Deere.

Kyari said  the postponement was necessitated by the need to proceed without hitches on the take-off of the Dry Season Wheat Farming, under the National Agricultural Growth Scheme and Agro – Pocket Programme (NAGS-AP).

He said that new dates for the food summit and the council meeting would be communicated to stakeholders in due course.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Joseph Edeh

By Abigael Joshua

Mr Koffy  Kouacou, Head of Emergency and Resilience Team Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Sub-regional Office, West Africa and the Sahel, has lauded Nigeria’ efforts at mainstreaming agrifood into its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans (NBSAPs).

Kouacou gave the commendation at a Workshop for the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework Early Action Support Project held on Friday in Abuja.

Represented by  Ogunkua Nifesimi, Kouacou said that FAO was  excited about Nigeria’s readiness to incorporate agrifood into its NBSAPs.

“This forward-thinking approach aligns with FAO’s mission to promote biodiversity conservation, sustainable natural resources management and ensure sustainable agricultural practices globally.

“Nigeria’s dedication to integrating agrifood into its national strategies is a commendable step toward building resilient and thriving biodiversity conservation.

“We, at FAO, stand shoulder to shoulder with Nigeria in this endeavour.

“Our commitment extends beyond mere words as we pledge our full support to the development, implementation, and evaluation of the NBSAPs.’’

The FAO team leader said that FAO recognised the importance of a holistic approach and was ready to collaborate closely with Nigeria to achieve these goals.

“To facilitate this collaborative effort, FAO has developed an impressive array of tools, frameworks, and approaches specifically designed to support the realisation of the global biodiversity targets.

“These resources serve as invaluable assets, empowering nations to navigate the complexities of sustainable development.

“We believe that by leveraging these tools, Nigeria can make significant strides in achieving its agrifood integration goals.

“In Nigeria, FAO operates within the framework of the Country Programming Framework (CPF), a comprehensive guide that directs our support to the country.’’

He said that Nigeria’s commitment to integrating agrifood into its NBSAPs was a testament to its vision for a sustainable and prosperous future.

“FAO is honoured to be a part of this journey; and that they look forward to witnessing the positive impact of the collective efforts on biodiversity conservation in Nigeria,’’ he said.

On his part, Dr Iziaq Salako, Minister of State for Environment, quoted the Inter-governmental Science Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) as saying that the world was facing an extinction crisis, with one million species threatened with extinction, many within decades.

“I am sure you will all agree with me that such a situation is unacceptable and that urgent action must be taken.

“Biodiversity underpins life on earth, from human health and well-being to food and water security to economies and livelihoods.

“Yet biodiversity is severely threatened and declining at unprecedented levels due to increasing pollution, resource exploitation, land use change, invasive species, and climate change, among other factors,” he noted.

Mr Antony Kamau, Programme Management Officer, Biodiversity and Land Branch Ecosystems Division, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), also spoke at the event.

He said that the Global Biodiversity Framework Early Action Support (GBF-EAS) project was designed to mobilise funding and support so that countries can meet the new biodiversity targets.

“National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs)

“Through this initiative, UNDP is working with countries to conduct a rapid review of the alignment of existing NBSAPs with the new framework to identify key areas that will need to be updated and refined in light of the new global framework and targets,’’ he said

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the NBSAP Forum is a global partnership aiming to support countries in implementing the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its strategic plans, including global biodiversity targets. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chijioke Okoronkwo