✕ CLOSE Online Special City News Entrepreneurship Environment Factcheck Everything Woman Home Front Islamic Forum Life Xtra Property Travel & Leisure Viewpoint Vox Pop Women In Business Art and Ideas Bookshelf Labour Law Letters
Click Here To Listen To Trust Radio Live

How Kano agro project is lifting women out of poverty

Farming was initially regarded as men dominated affair with little or no consideration given to women. It is also on record that women’s exclusiveness in…

Farming was initially regarded as men dominated affair with little or no consideration given to women. It is also on record that women’s exclusiveness in agricultural practices has significantly contributed to the increase in the poverty status of women, especially in rural communities within Kano State.

A female farmer, Malama Rabi Liman Garun Malam, during a brown field day, organized by Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA), before the Kano State agro development project came to their rescue, said women were only aligned to animal rearing and nothing more in terms of agricultural activities. She explained that most women are highly dependent on their husbands, adding that women were mere consumers and produces virtually nothing.

However, Malama Rabi, who is now the leader of an established group of women rice farmer association, said women in Bunkure Local Government can now beat their chest as producers and contributors to the economic development of their areas.

Sample of the packaged rice produced by the women farmer associations

 

She revealed that women in the area were advised to form women rice farmers group of 25 members each and these groups received training on rice planting techniques, processing as well as other processes involved in rice value addition, among other things, to establish a sustainable business outlet. She also revealed that members of the established and registered groups were also encouraged to produce other things apart from rice.

“Let me state here that this intervention brought to our door steps by SAA under Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project (KSADP) has changed the lives of women in this area, we can now send our children to schools at all levels. For instance, I personally have children in the university likewise many of our members. We operate as a small company, we produce rice flour, branded packages, rice doughnuts, rice yoghurt among other things. The good thing is that we are also linked with the market and that has made it very easy for us,” said Rabi. 

She further stressed that to her knowledge, over 1, 125 women have benefited from the project within only five local government areas, adding that the vast positive implication of the project will be felt when it covers all the 44 local governments. According to her, the project will improve the livelihood of many women in the state.  

Similarly, Sasakawa’s KSADP coordinator, Malam Abdulrasheed Kofar Mata, revealed that the project was with funding from Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD) and Lives and Livelihood Fund (LLF). He said the project which is a five year one, was given a target of 121, 500 farmers in the first year, adding that in the course of implementation, the project was able to, in the first year, touch the lives of 119, 000 farmers directly across the 20 local governments.  

He explained that the project involves both farmers of dry and wet season across some specific crops value chain, adding that in under the value addition component of the project, 45 women groups were formed of 25 members each and these women according to him were trained on rice farming as well as rice processing and packaging in line with value addition methodology.

He further revealed that these women were also empowered with rice processing equipment to ease their work as well as connect them to the market. 

Another beneficiary of the project Hajiya Tabawa Bunkure, revealed that with the project’s intervention, beneficiaries of the project are now doing better economically as they have a sustainable source of income attached to what they do as against the traditional rearing method which she said has a limit.

“We can now compete with the women in the cities in various things. Our children no longer drop out of school; we can proudly go to any market and do transaction with our own money at will. The project had taught us effective record keeping and we are expanding our capital base. Our packaged rice is one of the best sought for rice in the market because we have processed it and branded it in a good way that it would be very difficult to differentiate it from the rice milled by mega rice mills in the cities,” she said.

VERIFIED: It is now possible to live in Nigeria and earn salary in US Dollars with premium domains, you can earn as much as $12,000 (₦18 Million).
Click here to start.