The meeting was convened under the Resilient and Inclusive Agri Food Systems Empowering Women and Youth (RISE) project, funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by Sahel Consulting with partners.
Musa Muhammad Shaga, Chairman of the Joint National Association of Persons with Disability (JONAPWD), lamented that PWDs are often overlooked in government programmes despite their active involvement in farming.
“We are also into farming. I personally farm the rice I eat in my home every year. We also need land to farm,” he said.
From the Kano Ministry of Women Affairs, Children and People with Special Needs, Assistant Director Samira Wada Kura explained that over 1,000 women cooperative groups are registered with the ministry, some of which are farmers.
She said the ministry is working to promote women’s participation in agriculture through awareness creation and sensitisation on land access, but challenges of funding and information gaps persist.
Aminu Ibrahim, Director of Extension Services at the Kano Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (KNARDA), acknowledged that women remain underrepresented in extension services despite the agency having 250 female staff.
He stressed that inclusiveness, rather than fixed quotas, should guide land allocation decisions.
