SWOFON appeals for special agric. intervention fund for women

By Our Reporter 

The Small-scale Women Farmers Organization of Nigeria (SWOFON), has appealed to the Federal and State Governments to create a special intervention fund for women farmers to enable them increase food production in the country.

The National President of SWOFON, Mrs Mary Ishaya made the appeal on Thursday while presenting obsolete farm implement to the National Commission for Museums and Monuments to be kept in the museum in Makurdi. 

Our Correspondent reports that the traditional implement the organization presented to the commission were a hoe, small hoe, cutlass and sickle.

She stated that women as major contributors to the agricultural sector were faced with the challenge of funding which in turn was hampering agricultural activities.

She stressed that if the special intervention fund was made available to women they would step up agricultural production thereby boosting food security.

She further requested that strategic gender friendly farming equipment and inputs should be made available to women farmers in the country on time.

She stated that it was the strong desire of women farmers to retire or stop using crude implement to farm because they make farming unattractive.

"We have submitted some of the traditional or obsolete farming equipment to be put in the museum because what we need now are the power tillers, harvesters among others," Ishaya said.

She noted that in achieving food security, government must encourage farmers, particularly women by providing gender friendly and modern agricultural  tools and inputs in order to overcome the challenges being faced by farmers.

Responding on behalf of the commission, the Curator Makurdi Office, Mrs Cecilia Musa, appreciated the gesture, promising that the commission would display the obsolete equipment in the museum's gallery for generations yet unborn in conformity with the commission's mandate.

Also, the state Coordinator of SWOFON, Mrs Janet Adejo, encouraged women to add value to the agricultural products that they produced so as to enhance their income profile.