SAA/ KSADP Intervention Uplifts Women Farmers, PWDS
HAJIYA Hajara Balarabe is a small- scale processor in Tunpapi village, Dawakin- Tofa Council, Kano. She specialises in the processing of maize, groundnut and soya beans – a business she manages with little profits daily. Yet, the mother of six has remained steadfast with her small business to support her husband and keep the home front strong.
Today, Balarabe’s story has changed for good with the support received through the Kano State Agro- Pastoral Development Project ( KSADP), a multifaceted agricultural value chain programme, with technical support from Sasaka wa Africa Association ( SAA).
The female processor, who joined a 25- woman corporate group , T unpapi Groundnut Oil W omen Association, to access basic business orientation, has now scaled up her production. Full of gratitude for the intervention, she can now boost of better livelihood, even in her locality.
Hajiya Amina Abukakar, a resident of Makoda Council, is another beneficiar y of the intervention who shared her testimony . Unlike Balarabe, Abukakar is into rice processin g and packaging value chain. Despite her age- long engagement in paddy production and processing, her income and savings through the traditional method of parboiling, is hardly enough to meet her basic needs.
Before accessing SAA/ KSADP training and support, Amina and hundreds of women rice processors in Makoda carry out their businesses in a rather tedious and time consuming traditional manner – parboil of paddy. No doubt, the old method could not guarantee quality and well- packaged produce that met market standard.
Revealing her success story to journalists, Abukakar said knowledge gained through the SAA/ KSADP programme empowered her to upscale her produces and meet market expectation. She is overwhelmed with joy that her finished products now reach consumers outside her community.
“After the training from Sasakawa, my colleagues and I can transform soya beans to many other delicacies. Besides, we were trained on financial literacy and management, maximising profits and how to better our lives. Now we produce oil from groundnut and Kulikuli. We can’t thank them enough,” Abukakar said.
As for Balarabe, SAA/ KSADP intervention had not only transformed her business orientation, but significantly exposed her and many other beneficiaries to hidden opportunities in the value chain.
“We were trained how to parboil our paddy to get maximum quality and eliminate waste. After training, KSADP gave us pots and leather bags to dry the rice. They also gave us machines to package our rice and link us with the market. It is a life changing experience.”
Besides the impact on processing value chain, SAA/ KSADP provides technology to boost and enhance productivity, essentially in the area of storage. This area of interest is designed significantly to reduce the cost of post harvest losses farmers incurred during off session.
Malam Haruna Isiyaku is a vegetable farmer who cultivates large quantities of Onions in Badume village in Bichi Council, Kano State. Despite the huge profit margin in onion production, lack of storage facilities is a critical challenge of Haruna and other farmers in that business.