Anambra State Government has assured women farmers and agricultural advocacy groups of government support while urging stronger monitoring of agricultural programmes and budget implementation in the state.
Secretary to the Anambra State Government (SSG), Mrs Chiamaka Nnake,
gave the assurance during an advocacy visit by the Social and Integral Development Centre (SIDEC) and the Small Scale Women Farmers Organisation in Nigeria (SWOFON).
Angel Network News (ANN) reports that
the groups visited the SSG to advocate increased investment in agriculture, climate-smart policies and improved support systems for smallholder women farmers across the state.
Responding to the concerns raised, Nnake commended SIDEC and SWOFON for sustaining their advocacy efforts and maintaining partnerships aimed at improving the livelihoods of rural farmers despite changes in government administrations.
The SSG encouraged the organisations to go beyond advocacy by ensuring that government agricultural programmes and budgeted activities are effectively monitored and evaluated for proper implementation.
According to her, stakeholders must ensure that projects planned by the Ministry of Agriculture are executed and reach intended beneficiaries. “You will also be prioritised in a room where I am opportune to speak for you,” she assured the delegation.
In her speech, SIDEC Executive Director, Mrs. Ugochi Ehiahuruike, said the organisations remained committed to promoting inclusive development, food security, climate resilience and sustainable agricultural practices through grassroots mobilisation and advocacy engagements.
She identified major challenges confronting smallholder women farmers in the state to include poor access to farm inputs, inadequate storage facilities, weak extension services, limited agricultural financing and poor rural infrastructure.
Ehiahuruike also lamented the low budgetary allocation to agriculture, which she noted falls below the 10 per cent benchmark contained in the Maputo/Malabo Declaration.
Also speaking, SWOFON State Coordinator, Georgina Akunyiba, also raised concerns over the activities of what she described as “celebrity farmers,” alleging that individuals who are not real farmers often benefit from government interventions ahead of genuine farmers in rural communities.
The groups called for the establishment of a revolving agriculture credit facility, creation of a dedicated desk for attracting agricultural and climate finance, and development of a centralised farmers’ database to support effective agro-policy planning.
Highlight of the visit was the presentation of a video by SIDEC’s Executive Director showing her harvesting palm fruits from her farm as a beneficiary of the state government’s previous farm input distribution programme.
