February 29, 2024
Announcing our New Initiative: Strengthening Agriculture and Empowering Farmers in Northeast Nigeria
Building an Africa that feeds itself and the world is at the heart of our mission at ThriveAgric. Hence, building up on our announcement from January and following our commitment to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2: Zero Hunger, we're thrilled to announce yet another partnership initiative with Mercy Corps Rural Resilience Activity, aimed at revolutionizing agriculture and empowering farmers in Northeast Nigeria.
Project Overview:
Running from January to September 2024, this project tackles two critical challenges faced by smallholder farmers in the region:
- Quality Agricultural Inputs
- The Challenge: Limited access to quality inputs
According to the World Bank, over 50% of agricultural inputs in Africa are adulterated or counterfeit. Because of this, farmers face difficulties accessing high-quality agricultural inputs due to a market saturated with adulterated products and limited access to credit, significantly impacting crop yields and farmer income.
- Our Solution: Access to Quality Inputs:
We're leveraging the Tradr platform to connect 50 agri-SMEs with affordable, high-quality inputs. Additionally, 6 Tradr one-stop agro-input shops will be established across Adamawa, Yobe, and Gombe states, providing farmers with easy access to essential agricultural resources.
2. Enhancing Rice Market Potential:
- The Challenge: The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that post-harvest losses in Africa can
reach up to 50%for some crops, including rice. These significant losses are often due to inadequate infrastructure hindering market potential.
- Our Solution: We're establishing a rice processing and cleaning facility in Gombe State to minimize losses and enhance the value of rice produced by smallholder farmers. This directly contributes to SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production and contributes to Nigeria’s self-sufficiency goals aligning with SDG 2: Zero Hunger.
Project Impact:
This project goes beyond just providing resources. It directly aligns with our mission by focusing on:
- Empowering individuals: 33 young men and women will be trained and employed, contributing to SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth.
- Building stronger businesses: We'll build the capacity of 50 agri-SMEs, fostering economic development and SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities.
- Supporting farmers: 7,000 smallholder farmers will gain access to critical resources and improved market participation, contributing to SDG 1: No Poverty.
- Financial inclusion: N10,000,000 in input loans will be provided to agri-SMEs, facilitating access to finance and SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.
- Reducing food waste: The automated mini grain cleaning facility will address post-harvest losses, contributing to SDG 2: Zero Hunger.
Together with Mercy Corps and our community of farmers, we're excited to embark on this transformative journey towards a more sustainable and prosperous agricultural sector in Northeast Nigeria.
Stay tuned for updates as we work together to build an Africa that feeds herself and the world! Read our January project announcement here.
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