Image of a smiling woman sitting beside a bowl of fried food and offering some to someone off-camera with a large spoon.

Empowering Nigeria’s Farmers .

June 2, 2016

In Nigeria, a training approach that integrates agronomic and business management best practices is boosting yields, increasing incomes, and empowering farmers.

Nigeria has plenty of fertile land but struggles to feed itself. Seeing an opportunity to make the agricultural sector more productive and profitable, the Nigerian government partnered with USAID and Chemonics in 2012 to launch the Maximizing Agricultural Revenues and Key Enterprises in Targeted Sites (MARKETS) II project. MARKETS II is the third iteration of the project; the original MARKETS activity started in 2005. And in the last few years, the project has developed a comprehensive training approach that is transforming the country’s farms into businesses, and empowering farmers and internally displaced people.

Each of the targeted value chains — rice, maize, soy, aquaculture, cocoa, and more — have their own crop production and soil management workshops. These training sessions are often led by master trainers and take place throughout the agriculture cycle. Follow-up visits to farms are designed to ensure continued adoption of approaches and technologies. In addition, the project delivers business and financial workshops. This multi-layered approach has led to major productivity increases and a better quality of life for Nigerians across the country.

Farming as a Business

“I never thought I was capable of having such a good life, and especially not from farming,” said Vitalis Tanongo. Vitalis had never farmed, but he heard about an upcoming training and went to learn about rice farming best practices. The training paid off, and he eventually increased his farmland to 10 hectares, diversifying to include sesame, soybeans, and maize.

Vitalis then focused on the business side of agriculture, attending a training about conducting market surveys and buying inputs during the off-season. He was able to increase his cultivated land to 40 hectares and his yields to five metric tons per hectare, and now supplies several Nigerian agribusinesses, including UMZA Rice Mill in Kano state.

Using the profits from his successful farming business, Vitalis bought two houses and sends his children to one of the best schools in the state. He also gives back to the community. Following clashes between herdsmen and farmers in his locality, he distributed two kilograms of rice seed to 2,000 displaced farmers. He also works with 400 farmers by providing them with seed and teaching them about MARKETS II’s recommended practices through demonstration plots.

“I see a very bright future ahead of me,” he said. “This project opened my eyes to see the business opportunities in agriculture, and equipped me with skills to explore them.”

“I never thought I was capable of having such a good life, and especially not from farming."

Vitalis Tanongo, farmer

“This was my turning point. I never thought a three-day training would change my life forever and for the better. I will continue training more youth so that they can get a meaning for their lives like I did.”

Khadija Suleiman, aquaculture farmer

“Being a successful farmer does not just mean growing more on a hectare of land. Successful farmers need the tools of small business owners. The MARKETS II training provides these tools, and we showcase successful farmers and their farmer associations as models to emulate. And everything we do considers the long-term sustainability of our efforts beyond the project’s end date.”

Harvey Schartup, chief of party of MARKETS II

“Before the training, I didn’t know anything about profit or capital. I would just sell and use all the money, sometimes forgetting to keep some for restocking. I do not have a perfect life, but I certainly have a better one. I will take one step at a time and eventually get where I want to be.”

Ladi Mathias, beneficiary of a MARKETS II-led training in an IDP camp in Abuja

The Proof is in the Income

Vitalis is just one of many farmers who are discovering new ways to increase their income. For Khadija Suleiman, aquaculture was a turning point in her life. After graduating from college in Kano state, she attended a government-sponsored training on fish farm management at the Kano Fisheries Institute. Afterward, using donated plastic tanks and 500 fingerlings (small young fish), she managed to harvest 350 fingerlings, but lost 150. Determined to master her trade, she attended a training jointly offered by MARKETS II and the Kano Fisheries Institute. There, she learned about business concepts and market conditions that could affect her profit and production.

“This was my turning point,” she said. After the training, she restocked with 500 catfish and sold them for 300,000 naira, using part of her earnings to restock. In time, she began to sell fish feed and other fish products, and is planning to start drying fish to add value and attract more income.

With her newfound success, Khadija is now a role model in her community, especially among other young people. She trains youth on fish and business management, helping them to gain the same financial independence that she enjoys.

“I never thought a three-day training would change my life forever and for the better,” said Khadija. “I will continue training more youth so that they can get a meaning for their lives like I did.”

Across target states, thousands of farmers are seeing similar successes following the integrated training program. For example, most aquaculture farmers in the country harvest an average of 10 metric tons of catfish per hectare per production cycle. By comparison, project-trained aquaculture farmers harvest an average of 18 metric tons per hectare—and are not only recording their expenditures and revenues but also looking for opportunities to reduce costs.

“Being a successful farmer does not just mean growing more on a hectare of land. Successful farmers need the tools of small business owners,” explained Harvey Schartup, the project’s chief of party. “The MARKETS II training provides these tools, and we showcase successful farmers and their farmer associations as models to emulate. And everything we do considers the long-term sustainability of our efforts beyond the project’s end date.”

18

metric tons of catfish harvested per hectare by project-trained aquaculture farmers; compared to an average of 10 metric tons.

8,733

people provided with training resources on nutrition, sanitation, and microenterprise.

Remaining Flexible to Changing Needs

While keeping its focus on smallholder farmers, the project is also expanding its training to respond to the needs of vulnerable groups. With internal armed conflicts, there are roughly 1.4 million internally displaced people across the country. As of March 2016, MARKETS II has distributed resources for nutrition, sanitation, and microenterprise training to 8,733 people. These sessions taught vulnerable households how to overcome malnutrition and poor hygiene while gaining critical business skills to increase their incomes.

For Ladi Mathias, this training came at just the right time. While attending a MARKETS II-led training in Kuchingoro camp in Abuja, she learned how to better manage her small akara business, provide affordable balanced meals to her family, and practice proper hygiene and sanitation to avoid illness. Although initially disappointed that MARKETS II was providing training rather than money, she now says that the knowledge she gained is far more valuable than cash.

“Before the training, I didn’t know anything about profit or capital. I would just sell and use all the money, sometimes forgetting to keep some for restocking,” she said.

The training gave her the tools to keep records and save, and she now sets aside enough money to feed her family three balanced meals a day (compared to just one daily meal prior to the training). She can also afford to send her children to school, and uses her increased income to help others in need; for example, she recently paid for a 500 naira injection for a sick woman in her camp.

“I do not have a perfect life, but I certainly have a better one,” Ladi said. “I will take one step at a time and eventually get where I want to be.”