Agriculture with Jimoh

By Godwin Atser Mainstreaming gender in development has several benefits such as building resilience and sustainability in projects and programs. Several studies have proven that development projects with strong gender component tend to have greater impact on the livelihoods of people. For instance, analysis from the World Bank, have shown that, in many contexts, more equitable access to education by women and girls can give very positive returns in improved family health, greater productivity and reduced family size. Furthermore, greater health for women impacts positively on the health of other family members, especially children. Experience in the area of agriculture has indicated that the failure of many agricultural programs in developing countries could be directly related to the neglect of women’s productive roles, particularly in relation to food crop production. Even in developed societies such as the United States, a recent report, ”Women, Work and the Economy,” publish...

Nigeria’s Oyo State wants relations with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) stepped up as the state plans to diversify its economy with a greater focus on agriculture to boost incomes, generate wealth, and create job opportunities for young men and women. The request for closer collaborations with IITA is coming at a time when oil revenues to the country are plummeting and trading at below $50 dollar per barrel. Like every other state in Nigeria, the shortfall in oil revenues coupled with increasing youth unemployment has raised the clamour for agriculture as an option to solve the socioeconomic puzzle. Senator Abiola Ajimobi , Oyo State Governor, said on Tuesday that the prevailing economic reality has put to test the widely held narrative that agriculture is a poverty fighter and a generator of wealth and employment. Consequently, he called on agricultural experts from IITA to provide answers to the puzzle by proffering soluti...

By Jimoh Babatunde ILORIN—The Federal Government says to bring about the needed change in agriculture that there is need to focus energy more on developing and creating enabling environment for the rural areas to grow as the nature of the new growth in Nigeria is one that is inclusive and opens up the rural economy. Speaking at the flag off of the second phase of the Agricultural Equipment Hiring Enterprise, AEHE, yesterday in Ilorin, the Minister of Agriculture, Audu Ogbeh, said it would be unthinkable and counterproductive, to think of developing agriculture in Nigeria by continuing to distribute hoes, machetes, axes and ordinary and low yielding seeds to farmers. “Capitalism puts wealth in the hands of the drivers but the time to democratise capitalism, especially in the Nigerian agricultural sector is now. This government is committed to achieving an all-inclusive growth,” he said. While noting that agriculture has regrettably been seen to be synonymous with povert...