WFP, AfDB to reduce post-harvest losses of 200,000 small-scale farmers in N’East
By Tada Juthan, Maiduguri The World
Food Programme (WFP), in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Mastercard Foundation, has targeted 200,000 small-scale farmers to reduce their post-harvest losses in the Northeast.
According to the UN agency, 60% of the farmers are women in improving post-harvest management of millet and sorghum in the region.
The WFP Country Director in Nigeria disclosed this on Friday in Mamudo community, Yobe State, while inaugurating a 60 KVA solar-powered plant for an irrigation scheme in the state.
He also highlighted farmers’ impact in driving a sustainable growth in the country’s agricultural sector. According to him, the agricultural program is implemented in the Northeast and Northwest, targeting Yobe, Borno, Adamawa, Jigawa, Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kano states.
Speaking on the funding of the program, Stevenson said, “Through public-private partnerships like this, we’re reinvesting directly into northern states’ food systems,” noting that this will help restore the country’s former breadbasket back to production.
He added that WFP, the bank and the foundation, are proving that food security and employment of youths are possible in the North.
The Director-General of AfDB, Abdul Kamara, also stated, “We’re on a tour of Yobe, Borno, Kano, and Jigawa states to assess the impact of our investments,” adding that this will enable the bank to develop a collaborative approach with WFP and the Mastercard Foundation to deliver sustainable solutions.
Besides the partnerships, he stated, “The foundation has invested $5 million (N7.5 billion) in the last three years through the UN agency to create good jobs for youths and women in the agricultural sector. He noted that the foundation is helping to improve the livelihoods of the small-scale farmers through food security.
