Police Officers’ Wives Association’s (POWA), has unveiled the ‘National Soil to Security’ campaign Team (SSC), to fast track the implementation of 12 million young Nigerian women through transformative agribusiness education.
The initiative with active support from UNESCO REF Young Women in Agriculture (YWA) aims to support the current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s efforts at ensuring food security in the country.
POWA National President and Wife of the Inspector General of Police, Dr. Elizabeth Egbetokun, inaugurated the national campaign team during the Police Officers’ Wives Association’s 61st anniversary celebration, held at Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos State.
Mrs. Egbetokun who doubles as the National Advocate for the (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization’s Read and Earn Federation) UNESCO REF Young Women in Agriculture (YWA) Initiative, disclosed that through the campaign young women would break-free from poverty by engaging in resilient, scalable agriculture that creates income, dignity, and national impact.
She explained that the SSC Team operates as the official outreach and mobilization engine under the UNESCO REF Strategic Intervention Programme – ALPHA (SIP-ALPHA) Framework, designed to advance food security, promote climate-smart agriculture, and deliver inclusive socioeconomic empowerment across all regions of Nigeria.
The launch was also announced in Abuja through a statement by Prince Abdulsalami Ladigbolu-Oranmiyan, President of the UNESCO Read and Earn Federation (UNESCO REF).
Ladigbolu-Oranmiyan said UNESCO REF and POWA have teamed up to empower young women in agriculture across Nigeria, driving skills development and gender inclusion in the sector.
He quoted Dr. Elizabeth Egbetokun, President of POWA to have said that the unveiling was geared toward the commemoration of POWA’s 61st Anniversary Celebration.
Egbetokun is also the National Advocate for the UNESCO Read and Earn Federation (UNESCO REF) Young Women in Agriculture (YWA) Initiative.
She said the team would operate as the official outreach and mobilisation engine under the UNESCO REF Strategic Intervention Programme – ALPHA (SIP-ALPHA) framework.
The framework, she said was designed to advance food security, promote climate-smart agriculture, and deliver inclusive socioeconomic empowerment across all regions of Nigeria.
According to her, the initiative also serves as a strategic response to the Federal Government’s emergency declaration on food security made on July 13, 2023.
The team, she said were also designed to create sustainable income and position young women in high-value agricultural sectors from production to export.
“Through this campaign, we are enabling young women to break free from poverty by engaging in resilient, scalable agriculture that creates income, dignity, and national impact,” Egbetokun said.
She said the YWA initiative and the SSC campaign directly support key national priorities, including President Bola Tinubu’s food security and agribusiness transformation agenda.
Accordingly, she said that it also support the Renewed Hope Initiative led by First Lady Sen. Oluremi Tinubu.
She added that other initiative the project support includes: UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 1, 2, 5,8, and 13.
Egbetokun noted that the campaign was also a strategic response to the Federal Government’s emergency declaration on food security issued on July 13, 2023.
Launched through the SIP-ALPHA Category II Framework, the YWA Initiative introduces alternative, tech-driven crop production models such as hydroponics farming and Kenaf-Agro enterprise.
Also speaking, Ladigbolu-Oranmiyan, who is also the National Coordinator for YWA Nigeria, emphasised the transformational potential of the initiative.
“The future of food is no longer buried beneath the soil; it is engineered through knowledge, equity, and innovation.
“With the launch of the SSC Team, Nigeria demonstrates not only its commitment to sustainable agriculture but also to harnessing the power of young women as architects of a resilient economy and peaceful society,” he said.
The Soil to Security Campaign Team is tasked with mobilising and sensitising young women across all states and promoting agritech adoption and access to inclusive markets.
Other responsibilities of the team include driving grassroots registration and community engagement.
By 2030, the initiative would have targeted the training and certification of 12 million Young Women in Agriculture (YWA) Champions as well as creation of resilient, women-led agribusiness ecosystems.
The initiative is supported by a coalition of government and development stakeholders, including the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on SDGs.
