WOMEN FARMERS TASKED ON CONTRIBUTION TO FOOD SECURITY.



Jos - In order to encourage women farmers, address lack of access to land and boost food security, the Plateau State Ministry of Agriculture has concluded plan to provide farmlands across the three Senatorial zones of the State for small scale rural farmers.

This was disclosed by the National President of Small-scale Women Farmers Organization in Nigeria, SWOFON, Mrs. Mary Afan while speaking with journalists in Jos.

Afan stated that investment in food security will ensure other forms of security not only in the State but the nation adding that the provision of farm inputs and giving rural women access to land would contribute immensely in addressing poverty in the land.

She further called for increase in budgetary allocation and timely release of funds to the agricultural sub-sector by all tiers of government and urged rural women not to see farming as a hobby but a means of investment and livelihood.

According to her, “SWOFON works with rural women farmers and our vision is to build capacity and be a strong advocacy platform for smallholder women farmers to participate in translating agricultural policies into action.

“Our major problems are lack of access to land, lack of access to credit facility, lack of access to market, lack of information services, lack of infrastructural development, lack of inclusion and lack of organization and linkages.

“But we are not deterred because we know food security is security, the State Ministry of Agriculture has intervened by giving us a truckload of fertilizer at subsidized rate and plans are underway to provide farmlands across the three Senatorial zones for rural women to farm.”


She however urged government at all levels to stop paying lip service to agricultural issues but improve support for value chain programmes so that there would be food security and poverty reduction.

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