Bauchi Stakeholders WANT SUSTAINABLE ACCESS TO Farmland For Women, Youths

Stakeholders in Bauchi State have asked the state government to strengthen policies, advocacy and programmes that promote equitable and sustainable access to farmland for women, youths, persons with disabilities (PWDs) and women-led organisations.

They also urged the government to establish transparent and inclusive mechanisms for the allocation and leasing of public and government-acquired farmland, with special consideration for vulnerable and marginalised groups.

The stakeholders made the call at a one-day policy roundtable on Sustainable Access to Farmland for Women and Female and Male Youths in Bauchi State, held yesterday at Yimir Hotel, Bauchi.

The meeting was organised by Sahel Consulting under the Resilient and Inclusive Agrifood Systems Empowering Women and Youth in Nigeria (RISE) Project, in partnership with the Federation of Muslim

Women’s Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN) and other consortium partners.

In his welcome address, Joseph Apeh of Sahel Consulting Agriculture and Nutrition Ltd said the RISE Project was a five-year initiative running from 2025 to 2030 and funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC).

He said the project was being implemented by a consortium of partners with extensive experience in agricultural development and inclusive economic growth across Bauchi, Kaduna and Kano states.

According to him, the project seeks to transform agrifood systems through inclusive, climate-resilient and market-driven growth in four priority value chains, including rice, maize, groundnut and soybean.

He said the project was designed to address systemic barriers that restrict the participation, productivity, and economic empowerment of women and youth in agriculture, while promoting sustainable livelihoods and resilient food systems.

Presenting findings from the Integrated Market Systems Assessment (IMSA) conducted ahead of the RISE Project, agricultural expert Emmanuel Ameh highlighted the challenges that restrict the participation of women and youth in agriculture, particularly barriers to land access.

He stressed the need to ensure that women have meaningful access to and control over land for agricultural purposes.

“In most farming households, women contribute to different stages of agricultural production. They help with planting, weeding, harvesting, processing and marketing. Many women also engage in small-scale farming around their homes, while some have the capacity to operate on a much larger scale,” he said.

During panel discussions and group sessions, the Chairman of Civil Society Organisations (BASNEC) in Bauchi State, Mr Jinjiri Garba, called for a review of existing policies and institutional frameworks to develop actionable strategies for sustainable, equitable and climate-resilient access to farmland.

He also stressed the need for stronger collaboration among government agencies, traditional institutions, civil society organisations and development partners to promote inclusive land governance and agricultural development.

Also speaking, the executive director of the Association of Small Scale Agro Producers in Nigeria (ASSAPIN), Bauchi State chapter, Hajiya Amina Bala Jibrin, said women continued to face serious challenges in accessing and controlling farmland.

She said women-led households and female farmers were particularly affected when farmland was controlled by male household members.

Bala Jibrin also expressed concern over the impact of mining activities on agricultural land and youths in several local government areas.

She said some youths allocated farmland for cultivation had abandoned farming in favour of mining, while others leased or sold the land allocated to them rather than using it for agricultural production.

According to her, the situation has contributed to increased drug use and declining youth participation in farming, while discouraging government agencies from allocating land to youths free of charge.

A woman farmer, Hannatu Haruna, said youths in Bauchi faced limited access to farmland due to high land costs, inadequate access to family and community land, unemployment and limited financial capacity to acquire or lease farmland.

The District Head of Miri, Alhaji Hussaini Abubakar Othman, identified insecurity as another major challenge facing farmers, particularly those cultivating farmland deep in the forests.

He said farmers also faced theft of farm produce and high transportation costs associated with travelling to and from remote farmlands.

“We also noted the need for farm mechanisation, improved security and Climate Smart Agriculture,” he said.

Othman emphasised the need to engage traditional rulers, district heads, village heads, and community leaders to promote equitable land access and encourage customary practices that support women, youth, and other vulnerable groups.

The Chairman of the Joint National Association of Persons With Disabilities (JONAPWD), Haruna Saidu Pali, said PWDs faced additional barriers to accessing farmland, including physical accessibility challenges, discrimination, limited financial resources and inadequate consideration of their needs in community land allocation and agricultural programmes.

He said PWDs were sometimes discouraged from seeking farmland because of discriminatory perceptions about their ability to farm.

“Most of the time when we request farmland for farming activities, we always receive feedback like, do PWDs farm, or how will they farm, especially blind people?” he said.

On his part, the Chief Imam of Masjidu Imamun Nabawi, Jos Road, Bauchi, Mukhtar Aliyu Muhammad, identified cultural norms associated with religious beliefs, government confiscation of land, farmer-herder clashes, limited access to finance, weak inheritance rights, high land rental costs, lack of documentation and inadequate participation in land-related decision-making as major barriers.

He said women-led cooperatives, farmer groups and community-based organisations could play an important role in improving women’s access to land, agricultural inputs, finance, markets and technical support.

He called for stronger support for such organisations to enable them to collectively advocate for equitable land access and negotiate with traditional institutions and landowners.

He also noted that some lands allocated to women and vulnerable groups appeared suitable but were actually infertile, resulting in poor harvests.

The participants called for a review of agricultural policies to include specific provisions allocating a percentage of government-owned farmland and agricultural inputs to women and youths.

The roundtable brought together representatives of relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), traditional institutions, religious leaders, civil society organisations (CSOs), farmer groups, cooperatives, women and youth associations, members of the Project Steering Committee (PSC) and other development stakeholders.

The meeting focused on identifying practical and policy-driven measures to improve access to farmland and address the challenges preventing women and youths from securing productive agricultural land.