LIVE UPDATES
The Director of HortiNigeria,Muhammed Idris,announced on Thursday that the organization has provided training to over 60,000 smallholder farmers and 2,000 entrepreneurs in Nigeria to improve agricultural practices.
This has resulted in a significant increase of approximately 92 percent in crop yields, specifically in cabbage, onion, and tomato production.
The disclosure was made by Abdullahi Umar on behalf of Idris during a two-day workshop held in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
The workshop aimed at enhancing the productivity and income of 60,000 smallholder farmers who were trained in pilot states including Kaduna, Kano, Ogun, and Oyo.
The horticulture program, HortiNigeria, is funded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Nigeria and implemented by a consortium including the International Fertilizer Development Centre (IFDC) and other international organizations.
Idris emphasized the importance of developing a sustainable and inclusive horticulture sector to improve food and nutrition security across Nigeria.
The program has launched various initiatives within the horticulture sector since November 2021, with plans to expand its reach and continue enhancing the capabilities of smallholder farmers, agro-entrepreneurs, and financial institutions in its last year of implementation in 2025.
Future efforts will focus on scaling successful innovations and increasing access to finance, Idris said
