The impact of the smallholder women farmers in Nigeria’s agriculture sector can never be quantified. With over 70% food in the country food need produced by this group of abandoned farmers, ActionAid Nigeria says there is need to make access to credit at single digit interest rate easy for them, JOHN OBA reports
A group of smallholder women farmers under the auspices of Small-Scale Women Farmers Organisation in Nigeria (SWOFON) has again called on the government to priorities efforts at making cheap credit at single digit interest rate available to smallholder women farmer across the country.
This is even as it called for the restoration of the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GES).
This was part of the resolution of the 2-day annual National Farmers Forum for smallholder women farmer across the 36 states of the country.
The event which was organised recently in Abuja, in collaboration with ActionAid Nigeria, had over 150 participants in attendance, provided an avenue for smallholder women farmers to interact with duty bearers and key stakeholders/donors in the sector on the participation and involvement of small time women farmers in agriculture policy making processes and programmes.
The women in a communiqué after the meeting noted that women smallholder farmers who are producers of over 70 per cent of the food consumed in the country are not currently involved in agriculture budgeting and policy making processes as there is no formal strategy for their involvement resulting in untapped potential of women farmers and the attendant low productivity.
Reading the communiqué, the national president, Mrs. Mary I. Afan, commended ActionAid Nigeria, for simplifying the Agriculture Promotion Policy of the federal government for small-time women farmers and provided a platform for smallholder women farmers to engage with the policy document, leveraging on the forum to review and strengthen the coalition of SWOFON as a movement of smallholder women farmers across Nigeria.
“There is increased support to smallholder women farmers across the states where SWOFON is present with increased interest and support from relevant National and State government ministries, agencies and Private Sector Organisations.” she said.
The women farmers recommended that the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme should be restored and implemented across Nigeria while they are included in agriculture budget and policy making processes at all levels.
According to her, the federal and state ministries of Agriculture should create specific yearly budget line items for smallholder women farmers.
“Federal and State Ministries of Agriculture should allocate at least 10 per cent of their annual budget each year in fulfillment of the 10 per cent Maputo Declaration Commitment.
“Cheap and easy access to credit at single digit interest rate should be made available to smallholder women farmers across Nigeria.
“The Rural Development Department of the federal ministry of agriculture and Rural Development need to support smallholder women farmers with the installation of solar-powered boreholes to help with irrigation farming and household use in rural households and communities.
“The Federal and State Ministries of Agriculture and Rural development need to ensure that extension agents across the 36 states and FCT in Nigeria train smallholder women farmers on the proper use of agro-chemicals.
“Strengthen the security mechanisms/systems of security and stop farmers-herders crisis across the states by establishing modern ranching, abattoir and processing systems,” the group stated.
Also, the group urged the government to urgently review the Land Use Act to address the issues of gender discrimination in land ownership while public financing foe extension services and support smallholder women farmers should be increased.
The group further explained that to build resilience to climate change, smallholder women farmers should be trained on climate resilient sustainable agriculture practices by federal and state ministries of agriculture and provided with access to organic fertilizers and organic control of pest.
“Smallholder Women Farmers Organisation in Nigeria (SWOFON) should be included as to represent women farmers as a member of the National Agriculture Council of Nigeria. And the federal ministry of agriculture and rural development and state ministries of agriculture
“Government needs to support smallholder women farmers with training on Nutrition Sensitive agriculture at the household level,” it stated.
