The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to empowering Nigerian women through agriculture with the launch of the Women’s Agro Value Expansion (WAVE) Programme by the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim.
In a statement signed by Anthony Agurue, Assistant Chief Information Officer of the Ministry, the Minister disclosed the initiative during the Renewed Hope – Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (RH-GEEP) Roundtable Meeting held in Abuja.
She commended the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA), the GEEP team, and other stakeholders for their dedication to promoting inclusion and empowerment.
According to her, “Women’s empowerment remains central to nation-building. When a woman is empowered, her entire family, community, and by extension, the nation, benefit through improved health, nutrition, and education outcomes.”
The Minister highlighted that women make up nearly 70 percent of Nigeria’s agricultural workforce. Despite this, she noted that they face barriers to value addition, market access, and decision-making roles, even though their contributions to food security are vital.
She explained that under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the WAVE Programme is designed to support women’s transition from farmgate operators to agri-preneurs and value creators.
The initiative will combine access to finance, skills development, market linkages, agribusiness support, mechanization, and storage facilities to reduce post-harvest losses. These steps are aimed at improving productivity and enabling women to take advantage of opportunities in both local and international markets.
According to Sulaiman-Ibrahim, the programme will also strengthen women’s roles within agri-food systems while positioning them to contribute more significantly to feeding the nation. She emphasized that financial inclusion, as promoted by RH-GEEP, must align with skills development and enterprise support for lasting impact.
She stated, “With the right access, opportunities, and partnerships, millions of Nigerian women can move from subsistence to prosperity and make significant contributions to the ₦1 trillion economy targeted under the Renewed Hope Agenda.”