CASCADE Flags Off Fed Rain Season, Supports 7,500 Women Small Holder Farmers With Orange Flesh Potatoes Vine 

.3,500 Others with  vegetable seeds across 4 implementing states

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi 

Catalysing Strengthened Policy Action for Healthy Diets and Resilience (CASCADE) Nigeria has flagged off Fed Rain season Agriculture Input Fair/Voucher Redemption to support 7,500 women small holder farmers with orange flesh potatoes vine and 3500 others with vegetables seeds across four implementing states of Bauchi, Jigawa, Kebbi and Nasarawa.

The Programme Manager of CASCADE Nigeria, Bauchi Office, Isaac Ishaya, made the disclosure yesterday at the flag off of the 2024 Rain Fed season agricultural input fair and voucher redemption at Miri Community in Bauchi Local Government Area.

Ishaya said that the aim is to increase access to and consumption of healthy diets, resilience to price and climate change related shocks and stresses for women of reproductive age and children Under – 5.

According to the program manager, CASCADE is giving out support to 1482 women small holders in Bauchi state with orange flesh potato vine and 613 other women are benefitting from assorted vegetables.

He added that, “In Bauchi State, we are working in Bauchi, Dass, Jama’are, Ningi and Toro local government areas.”

The organisation also reiterated its commitment to supporting women smallholder farmers to engage in nutrition sensitive agriculture in their localities.

Ishaya said that for CASCADE, the idea is to provide the needed support at household level for women smallholder farmers to be able to leverage their backyard gardens to cultivate vegetables and orange flesh potatoes.

According to him,  “Looking at the nutritional value of this potato in addressing hidden hunger as well as the importance vegetables have to the nutrition of households, this actually drove our commitment to strengthen women participation in agriculture through assessing agricultural inputs.”

He added that to re-enforce confidence among women small holder farmers, CASCADE Nigeria has engaged private sector actors with the intention to strengthen agricultural linkages between the farmers and lead agricultural firms.

According to him, “We want to boost confidence among smallholder farmers participation around their source of input as well as bridge the gap between farmers and source of input.”

In her remarks, Head of Women in Agriculture, Bauchi State Agricultural Supply Company, Helen Ciroma, said that the support to women smallholder farmers will improve their livelihood and their nutritional status.

According to her, “The orange flesh potatoes have nutritional value, it’s rich in vitamin A, helps in reducing inflammation, boost immune system and its good for patients with diabetes.”

She noted that the women can use sacks to plant the potatoes at home because, “The leaves can be used as vegetables while the tubers are good for fufu.”

Acting Executive Director, Forward in Action for Education, Poverty and Malnutrition, (FAcE-PaM), Dabis Mwalike, said that as partners working on nutrition, the engagement of women smallholder farmers in backyard farming will improve the nutrition status of women and children under five years of age.

Some of the women who spoke to THISDAY said that the potato vine and vegetable seeds will boost their farming.

They therefore commended CASCADE for the support saying that it will go a long way in assisting them to contribute to the well being of children. END