The Executive Director of the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS), Prof. Yusuf Sani, warmly welcomed the AGRA monitoring team in anticipation of the upcoming visit by AGRA project funders expected in Nigeria by August 2025. The visit aimed to evaluate the outcomes of the AGRA Kaduna Consortium’s initiatives from 2021 to 2024.
During the meeting, Prof. Sani highlighted NAERLS’s diverse extension methods, including publications, radio and television broadcasts, training programmes, and the adopted village model across Nigeria’s six agro-ecological zones. He emphasized the challenges faced, noting that in some states, the ratio of extension workers to farmers has reached alarming levels, with the worst-case scenario being 1 extension agent for every 24,000 farmers. He underscored the crucial role of Community-Based Advisors (CBAs) in complementing these efforts, particularly in Kaduna State.
Prof. Sani commended the AGRA Kaduna Consortium for its significant contributions to agricultural development in the region. He expressed gratitude to AGRA donors for their continued support towards enhancing extension services in Nigeria.
In response, Dr. Kodjo Kundo, the regional Monitoring and Evaluation Officer from Ghana, acknowledged Prof. Sani’s remarks. He outlined the purpose of their visit as preparatory groundwork for the upcoming assessment by project donors (KFW) scheduled for August 2025. This assessment aims to evaluate project impacts, sustainability, and the overall benefit to beneficiaries.
Prof. C. K. Daudu, the Principal Investigator of the AGRA Kaduna Consortium at NAERLS, presented an overview of the consortium’s achievements from 2021 to 2024:
- 1082 CBAs trained on promoted agricultural technologies
- Distribution of 677 AGRA-subsidized smartphones
- Establishment of 3 model processing centers in Zaria, Kubau, and Makarfi LGAs
- Creation of 3 climate-smart villages in Likoro, Katanga, and Kagadama communities
- Facilitation of 3 weather forecast advisories in collaboration with NiMET
- Cultivation of 469,971 hectares using improved agricultural technologies
- Training of 281 CBAs on the Smart Farm Plus app for digital farm management by CropIn Tech
- Linking 107 CBAs to premier seed companies as vendors and agro-dealers
The meeting also included representatives from key stakeholders such as Premier Seed, Premier Tropicana, Value Seeds, Extension Africa, LAUW, and PVNL. Dr. Esther Ibrahim, AGRA’s Program Officer, and Monitoring & Evaluation teams from Kenya, Abuja, and Ghana were also present.
One stakeholder testified to the project’s transformative impact, citing increased access to previously inaccessible areas and the integration of AGRA CBAs as out-growers, significantly boosting their company’s income and seed production by 25%.
As a gesture of appreciation, Prof. Sani presented a souvenir to the visiting delegation before they embarked on a field visit to Makarfi LGA to assess the project’s impact firsthand.
The visit underscored AGRA’s commitment to enhancing agricultural productivity in Nigeria through collaborative efforts with NAERLS and its consortium partners.
