Gombe Governor To Receive Special Recognition Award For Agricultural Leadership

Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State is set to be honoured with a Special Recognition Award by the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) Nigeria, in recognition of the state’s sustained partnership with the organization and its strategic commitment to agricultural transformation, food security, and rural prosperity.

The award will be presented to the Governor at the 2026 SAA Nigeria Annual Stakeholders Workshop, scheduled for Thursday, April 9, 2026, in Abuja, where top federal officials, development partners, diplomats, and representatives of state governments will gather to deliberate on pathways for strengthening Nigeria’s food systems and expanding agricultural resilience.

The recognition is part of the broader conversations at the 2026 Annual Stakeholders Workshop, which will review SAA’s achievements from 2021 to 2025, distill lessons from decades of field engagement, and explore future partnerships to advance agriculture in Nigeria and across Africa.

The workshop, themed “SAA @ 40: Deepening Impact and Expanding Reach at Scale,” coincides with the organization’s 40th anniversary of operations in Africa and underscores its renewed resolve to scale transformative interventions for smallholder farmers.

Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s recognition reflects the strength and depth of Gombe State’s longstanding collaboration with SAA, which has over the years supported agricultural extension services, improved smallholder productivity, enhanced climate resilience, and strengthened rural livelihoods.

Since its creation in 1996, Gombe State has maintained a productive working relationship with SAA, with support from The Nippon Foundation, to implement farmer-focused initiatives aimed at improving food security, nutrition, climate-smart agriculture, and inclusive agricultural service delivery, particularly for women, youth, and resource-poor farmers.

Speaking ahead of the workshop, the Country Director of SAA Nigeria, Dr. Godwin Atser, described the award as a celebration of purposeful leadership and practical results.

“This recognition celebrates a partnership backed by action. Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s leadership reflects the kind of subnational commitment essential for transforming agriculture in Nigeria. Gombe State’s sustained support for farmer-focused interventions demonstrates what can be achieved when political will, institutional alignment, and practical investment converge,” he said.

SAA Nigeria’s partnership with Gombe State spans a broad range of strategic interventions, including Farmer Learning Platforms (FLP), Community Savings and Investment in Agriculture (CSIA), Private Extension Service Provision (PESP), and Community-Based Seed Multiplication (CBSM), among others.

Collectively, these initiatives have strengthened the state’s agricultural ecosystem from production to post-harvest management, improved farmers’ access to technology, knowledge, quality inputs, and markets, while also building the capacities of farmers and rural institutions.

The collaboration has also promoted a pluralistic agricultural extension system, bringing together the private sector, farmer organizations, research institutions, and civil society to scale effective agricultural services across the state.