Abuja: The African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD) – Gender Responsive Agricultural Systems Policy (GRASP) Fellows have called for the inclusion of women in agricultural policies to improve productivity, livelihoods, incomes, and food security. The fellows made the call on the sidelines of the 9th Africa Agriculture Science Week and the 10th General Assembly of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) in Abuja. The session is themed ‘Beyond Participation, Financing and Policy Access for Women in Agriculture’.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Dr. Yetunde Oladokun, leader of the third cohort of AWARD GRASP Fellows and Principal Research Officer at the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), said the session brought together stakeholders to discuss policy gaps in areas such as tree cash crops, nutrition, and agricultural extension. She highlighted that although women account for more than 70 percent of smallholder food production, they remain inadequately represented in agricultural and nutrition policies.
Oladokun pointed out that policy gaps have limited women’s access to land, finance, extension services, and other productive resources needed to improve their livelihoods and contribute to national food and nutrition security. She cited policies such as the National Gender Policy on Agriculture, the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy (NATIP) 2022-2027, and the Zero Oil Palm Initiative, saying they did not adequately address the needs of women farmers.
She emphasized that these gaps have contributed to women’s limited access to and control over productive resources, thereby constraining their capacity and welfare. “We are here to discuss how gender gaps in agricultural policies can be addressed so that women can participate fully and access opportunities in agriculture. The fellows are presenting policy innovation projects covering tree cash crops, nutrition, extension, and other areas, with the aim of identifying gender gaps and promoting inclusive policy formulation,” she stated.
Speaking on her policy innovation project, ‘Advancing Gender-Responsive Policies for Inclusive and Sustainable Tree Cash Crop Development in Nigeria,’ Oladokun mentioned that it was designed to generate evidence to support the development of a gender-responsive national tree crops policy. She noted that while existing gender policies mostly focus on arable crop production, they pay little attention to women involved in tree crop value chains.
Also contributing, another AWARD Fellow, Mrs. Nuhu James, presented her policy project titled ‘Strengthening Disability Inclusion and Gender-Responsive Agri-food Systems in Taraba State.’ James highlighted that although agriculture remains central to livelihoods in Taraba, persons with disabilities, especially women, continue to face exclusion from land ownership, agricultural inputs, finance, extension services, training, among others.
James, from the Federal Government/International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) – Value Chain Development Programme, said findings from her study showed that 84.8 percent of persons with disabilities were engaged in agriculture, although most remained subsistence farmers. She said the project would support the development and adoption of gender-responsive and disability-inclusive agricultural policy guidelines for Taraba.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the GRASP Fellowship is a career development programme for mid-career African women working in agricultural policy. The initiative, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), seeks to strengthen the design and implementation of gender-responsive agricultural policies across Africa while advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment.