By Kevin Okunzuwa

Mrs Okla Joab, a teacher in Gombe State, struggled to make ends meet with her meager salary, barely sustaining herself and her two children each month.

However, her life took a dramatic turn when she embraced the agribusiness initiative introduced by the Japanese Nigerian-based Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA), a Non-Governmental Government Organisation (NGO), paving way to her financial independence.

In Gombe State, many women, especially widows, are most times traditionally confined to being full-time housewives, relying heavily on their spouses for financial support.

This dependence often renders them helpless, leaving them to live from hand to mouth. The situation is exacerbated by cultural norms that discourage women from engaging in meaningful economic activities.

Disturbingly, statistics reveal that approximately 59.3 per cent of women in these communities have experienced physical violence since the age of 15, largely due to their economic dependence on their spouses.

For widows, the situation becomes even more dire. Widowhood in these communities is often accompanied by maltreatment, discrimination, stigma, and economic hardship, leading to emotional instability, socio-economic instability, and psychological trauma.

However, SAA has been working to empower women in these communities, training them on new farming techniques, post-harvest preservation and marketing strategies among others.

This initiative has enabled women like Joab to break free from their financial dependence and achieve economic liberation through their ability to effectively cultivate their farms, courageously manage and market their farm produce, termed agribusiness.

The Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) has made significant strides in enhancing farmers’ access to essential inputs and enterprise skills, thereby improving livelihoods and contributing to food security in the region.

By empowering women in agribusiness, SAA is effectively dismantling the cultural and economic barriers that have long hindered their progress.

In a telephone interview with NAN, SAA’s Communication officer, Mr Moses Nongoatse, said the major objectives of the organisation’s work was to raise the crop management skills of front-line extension staff and smallholder farmers including the women farmers in order to increase their proficiency in crop production and productivity.

According to him, Nigeria is among the four focal countries, which include, Ethiopia, Mali, and Uganda, SAA is implementing field-based programmes that encompass the food system from production, post- harvest handling, and agro-processing, to marketing and consumption.

“Thousands of demonstration plots (also called Management Training Plots, were established with participating these farmers in the diffusion of improved wheat, maize, rice, cowpea, soybean, groundnut, millet, sorghum, and sesame cassava technologies.”

“We are currently working in Gombe, where many of the beneficiaries are widows, who have committed themselves, braced up and formed smallholders groups on cultivation, processing, preservation an marketing strategies which is the agribusiness aspect to become financially independent.

“Aside the training, SAA assist them to procure improved seedlings and farm inputs and more especially, help with their post harvest produce to avoid waste,” he said.

For women like Joab, SAA’s intervention has been a game-changer.

A mother of two, Joab lost her husband 12 years ago and struggled to make ends meet on her meager teacher’s salary. However, with SAA’s support, she has been able to break free from financial dependence and build a more secure future for herself and her children.

Joab’s life took a dramatic turn when she embraced agribusiness, introduced to her community by the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA).

Living in the Daban Fulani community, Kwami Local Government Area (LGA) of Gombe State, Joab recounts how SAA’s intervention brought a fresh breath of life to her and her household.

In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Joab shared her inspiring story.

“When SAA arrived in our community, the village head invited everyone to listen to their presentation. Many women, including myself, showed interest and underwent training in various aspects of farming.”

Joab’s decision to embark on agribusiness marked a turning point in her life.

“Today, members of my group are financially stable. I encourage other women in our community and neighbouring villages to seize this opportunity and embrace agribusiness,” she advised.

According to her, agribusiness has helped her achieve financial independence, food sufficiency for her and has boosts food security for the communities.

Joab had been struggling to make ends meet since her husband’s passing 12 years ago. In spite of been a teacher, her salary barely covered her household expenses.

However, in 2023, the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) arrived in her community, offering support and agricultural extension services. The NGO provided inputs and encouraged women to venture into agribusiness.

Joab seized this opportunity and has since seen a significant improvement in her life. “We were taught how to add value to our produce,” she explained.

“I now process agricultural produce, sell it, and make a good income. I can meet my children’s needs without delay.”

The SAA initiative also enabled Joab and other women in her community to form an Multi Purpose Cooperative Society, which has accumulated over N200,000 in less than a year. The cooperative provides loans to empower other women to start their own agribusinesses.

Joab noted that many women in her community were now supporting their households and earning respect from their families.

“Don’t sit at home doing nothing,” she advised. “You can buy produce, process it at home, and sell it. You’ll make money and won’t need to ask your spouse for petty cash.”

Mrs. Marline Molta, Coordinator of the Kauna Women Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society in Gombe State,  corroborated Joab’s testimony.

“We have different registered groups with relevant government agencies,” she explained.

“I coordinate the cooperative society groups in the state, and I also have my own group of 30 women who jointly own a cooperative farm,” she said.

Molta highlighted the challenges they faced, including inadequate funding, limited access to improved seedlings and inputs, and unavailability of large acres of farmland for lease.

She also noted that some women were restricted from participating due to religious reasons.

Mrs Altine Kiliyobas, another beneficiary, praised SAA’s intervention for exposing them to best agronomic practices, which significantly improved their yields.

She explained that SAA had trained and distributed improved seeds to women farmers in Yateren community, Shongom LGA.

” We were also taught preservation techniques to minimise post-harvest losses,” she said.

Mr Yila Sukar, District Head of Popandi Tal in Billiri LGA, described the initiative as a game-changer in the agriculture sector.

Ignatius Alhaji, a farmer, reported a 200 per cent increase in his maize and soybean harvest after adopting the new farming methods.

Barnabas Malle, Commissioner for Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Cooperatives, Gombe, acknowledged the significant impact of the NGO’s intervention on women’s involvement and improvement in farming activities.

“The training and new farming techniques have boosted crop yields and farmer income, changing the narrative in terms of productivity and income generation for farmers,” he said.

Professor Daniel Osasogie, an agronomy expert at Ambrose Ali University in Ekpoma, Edo,  commended the NGO’s impactful work in transforming the lives of women and widows in the agriculture sector.

In a telephone interview, Osasogie urged the government to support farmers, particularly vulnerable women and widows, in overcoming their challenges.

“To ensure the sustainability of these projects, the government must address the key obstacles, including religious restrictions, limited access to farmland, funding, and availability of improved seedlings,” he emphasised.(NANFeatures)
**If used please credit the writer and the News Agency of Nigeria.

Edited by Vivian Ihechu