The Youth Agricultural Enterprise Training Programme(YET-P) in Benue on Saturday trained 2,500 women on farming in a bid to boost their interest in the vocation and enhance food production.
Mr Kator Hule, the Director YET-P told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) during the training in Makurdi on Saturday that the women were trained under the Women Entrepreneurial Training Programme (WET-P).
Hule said that the exercise focuses on empowering women in Agricultural enhancement for food security in the state.
He said WET-P is an initiative developed as a toolkit for remedying the fall of Nigeria’s Agriculture .
Hule said it’s theme was: ”Engaging Women in Key Opportunities in Agriculture”.
He explained that it seeks to provide women with enriched training on Best Agricultural Practices towards improving their commitment to farm and curbing post harvest losses.
The Director further said women comprised of the largest percentage of the workforce in agriculture sector but do not have access and control over all land and other productive resources, hence the training will provide means to such matters.
He said: “we will enable women to claim their rights and access to land and other resources needed for farming that will help them contribute more to economic growth”.
He assured women that the WET-P will continue to source for opportunities to develop them in agriculture, setting demonstration farms .
“We will conduct development programmes that will enhance women’s role in agricultural productions, he said.
The convener of the programme and Chairperson Makurdi Local Government, Mrs Juliana Audu said that the programme was designed to impart relevant techniques on farm activities, develop entrepreneurship skill and encourage women participation in agriculture.
Audu added that the participants would be exposed to modern poultry and horticulture, adding that the beneficiaries would be provided with resettlement packages, to enable them to set up their businesses.
She said: “it is part of a comprehensive attempt to improve social and economic well being of mothers in the state”.
According to her, the programme was in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria, to empower women and expand the scope of the programme to enhance more participation in the exercise. (NAN)
