The Deputy Director-General, International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Oyo State, Dr. Kenton Dashiell, has said women need the right mentorship and training to succeed in agriculture in Nigeria.

Dashiell stated this in Ibadan, at a stakeholders’ workshop for Women in Agricultural Technical Education and Apprenticeship (WATEA) in Nigeria. The workshop was organised by IITA and the French Embassy in Nigeria.

The WATEA initiative is designed to empower 3,000 women in agriculture through education and apprenticeship in six states – Kwara, Enugu, Jigawa, Kano, Anambra and Oyo.

According to him, the challenges women face to be successful in agriculture can be overcome through right training, information and mentorship. “Many of them have not been exposed to the real potential in agriculture and are discouraged from venturing into agriculture, believing there is no money in it. There is a lot of money in agriculture.”

Also, the French Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Marc Fonbaustier, said agriculture has great potential in Nigeria. According to him, the French authority prioritises women and young people in agriculture.

Fonbaustier said the agricultural potential in Nigeria, if properly annexed, could be a great benefit to present and future generations, while also reducing unemployment.

“This project aims to promote inclusiveness and strengthen government and private partnerships for the development of agriculture in Nigeria,” he said.The Regional Counsellor for Agriculture, France Embassy, Dr Sonia Darracq, said the demand for qualified agrifood technicians was significant and increasingly presenting an opportunity for young women to access gainful employment or self-employment.

Darracq said WATEA would help to address unemployment and rejuvenate the ageing agricultural population by enhancing the employability of young people. The Jigawa State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Adisat AbdulWahab, says the state prioritises agriculture and provides special attention to women’s issues.

AbdulWahab called on the sponsors of the WATEA project not to limit their intention to technical schools but to expand it to women at the grassroots.“Women at the grassroots need intervention of this nature because the way I am seeing, it is like the intervention is limited to technical schools,” she said.

Also, the Kwara State Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mrs. Oloruntoyosi Thomas, said the WATEA project was needed to truly transform the country’s agricultural sector.

She said women, not only needed the training to develop their agricultural skills, but to also transform them into agribusiness persons through value addition and sustainability. In addition, the Commissioners for Women Affairs in Enugu, Anambra, Kano and Oyo states, other participants and experts also spoke at the event.