By King Richard/Goodluck Ikiebe.
The USAID has signed partnership
agreements with 14 private sector and civil society organizations to facilitate the recovery of the Northeast Nigeria
business environment.
The primary aim of the initiative is to improve the resilience and livelihood of smallholder farmers and micro-enterprise
owners.
The partnership became a reality via the USAID-funded Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience activity, through Mercy
Corps Nigeria.
In a statement by Mercy Corp Country Director, Ndubusi Emeka Anyawu, and Margarita Aswani, Chief of Party,
Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience.
Activity, reveals that Market structures in parts of the Northeast have been negatively impacted by the ongoing conflict and insecurity in
the region, which has resulted in significant loss of lives and property, destruction of critical infrastructure, displacement, and
the destabilization of economic, food,and animal production.
In addition to the
market crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the inaccessibility of the poor and rural dwellers, particularly women, youth, persons living with disabilities, and internally displaced
persons to market systems.
The officials added that to address these challenges, the
Rural Resilience Activity is investing an additional $2.5million, through the Notice of funding Opportunities (NOFO),to support 14 new private sector and civil
society partners to implement innovative ideas to reduce hunger and malnutrition, and increase the income and resilience of
smallholder farmers, micr-oenterprise owners and producer organizations in the Northeast. This additional funding will help to create market opportunities for
the participants by removing bottlenecks that impede inclusive market participation due to the shortage of market actors.
According to the Country Director,
Mercy Corps Nigeria, Ndubisi Anyanwu,
“We value partnerships and believe they
offer the best opportunity to deliver
quality programs and sustain them in the
long run. These partnerships will increase
incomes, promote sustainable change in
market systems, and enhance the
resilience of smallholder farmers and
microenterprise owners in conflict-
affected areas of Northeast Nigeria”.
According to the Chief of Party,
Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience
Activity, Margarita Aswani, “The new
partners that have emerged through the
NOFO are representative of the locations
where the Activity works. We are
incredibly proud to be supporting local
organizations that are investing in the
region”.
The new partners are Zenith of
the Girl Child and Women Initiative
Support (ZEGCAWIS), Smiling Hearts
Initiatives International, Biu Women
Castro & Jetropha Farmers, Livestock 247
Services, Diamond Development
Initiatives(DDI), Angala Fintech, Riby
Market Place Limited, Solar Sisters
Nigeria, Synergos, Standard Microfinance
Bank Limited, Interra Networks Limited,
Pula Advisor Nigeria Limited, Intrio
Synergy Limited, and Jewel
Entrepreneurship and Business School
(JEBS).
Partners such as DDI, Interra and
Synergos will facilitate improved access
to agricultural inputs (especially quality
certified seeds) for farmers, provide
linkages with processors,and strengthen
the capacity of weak producer
organizations. JEBS and ZEGCAWIS will
contribute to poverty reduction among
participants, especially women and youth,
through training on soft skills, financial
literacy, and business management.
The statement further reveals that through the partnership with Riby, Standard Microfinance Bank and Angala Fintech, the Activity will facilitate
access to financial and advisory services and literacy for at least 20,000 farmers and Micro, Small and
Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), as well as 1,000 women and youth groups in rural communities.
Biu Women
Castro and Solar Sisters Nigeria will create business opportunities for youth and women and build their
resilience and income generation ability on climate-smart enterprises. It will specialize in charcoal
briquette production, while Solar Sisters will support 300 women to kick-start and grow a clean energy
business.
The partnership with Intrio Synergy Limited will specifically target the youth to increase their economic
productivity through Agripreneurship development and capacity building activities. In addition, Livestock247,
Nigeria’s foremost online Livestock platform, will implement sustainable and impactful activities around
Livestock interventions.
The partnership with NOFO partners will complement existing partnerships with 11 private sector
organizations, under the Enterprise Investment Fund (EIF), which supports small, medium, and large-scale
enterprises investing in the Activity’s targeted areas in Borno, Adamawa, Yobe, and Gombe states.
The Rural Resilience Activity EIF fund leverages local and foreign capital investments in a range of market
development activities to improve market linkages, generate employment, and increase financial inclusion
with the goal of increasing incomes and enhancing resilience of smallholder farmers and microenterprises.
The statement further reveals that The Feed the Future Nigeria Rural
Resilience Activity is a five-year, USAID-
funded program, which seeks to facilitate
economic recovery and growth in
vulnerable, conflict affected areas by
promoting systemic change in market
systems.
The value chains supported by the Activity include maize, cowpea, groundnuts, rice production, and small ruminants. Using market-led approaches, the Activity will move over 540,000 individuals out of
chronic vulnerability and poverty.
