Niger stakeholders call for 30% agricultural budget and 50,000 hectares for women farmers
From Justina Asishana, Minna Stakeholders at the 2026 International Women’s Day celebration in Minna have urged the Niger State Government to allocate 30 percent of its agricultural budget and 50,000
From Justina Asishana, Minna
Stakeholders at the 2026 International Women’s Day celebration in Minna have urged the Niger State Government to allocate 30 percent of its agricultural budget and 50,000 hectares of land specifically to women farmers to strengthen their role in the sector.
The call emerged at an event organised by the Niger State Ministry of Agriculture in partnership with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) at the Doko International Hotel.
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Delivering the lead paper, Dr. Balaraba Abubakar Sule highlighted the gap between women farmers' contributions and the resources made available to them. She noted that smallholder women constitute roughly 70 percent of Nigeria’s agricultural labour force and produce about 60 percent of the country’s food, yet control only 14 percent of farmland.
Sule revealed that in Niger State’s 2024 agricultural budget of N29.77 billion, no funds were earmarked specifically for women. This forces them into precarious arrangements and high rental costs for farmland, with some paying up to N100,000 annually in areas such as Paikoro Local Government. She also pointed out that poor road infrastructure contributes to post-harvest losses of 40 to 60 percent for perishable crops.
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To address these challenges, Sule proposed reserving 50,000 hectares of the state’s 250,000-hectare land development program for women farmers and establishing a Niger State Women in Agriculture Development Agency with budgetary autonomy to ensure effective implementation of policies.
She emphasised that investing in women farmers is an economic strategy, not charity. Closing the gender gap in agricultural resources could increase farm yields by 20 to 30 percent, with women reinvesting up to 90 percent of their income into their families and communities.
Acknowledging these issues, Commissioner for Agriculture, Hon. Isah Sidi Rijau, said the state government is committed to improving women farmers’ access to finance, modern training, and cooperative support. He stressed that empowering women in agriculture is key to boosting productivity, enhancing food security, and reducing poverty across Niger State.
