A woman farmer call on benevolence organizations and government to bridge the gap of gender inequality.

A woman farmer call on benevolence organizations and government to bridge the gap of gender inequality.

A young woman who believe to be in her thirties, Madam Zenab Ibrahim is second generation farmer and she has engaged in farming from a very younger age working closely with her parents in Karaga district, a suburb of northern region.

She continues farming with the late husband Mr. Ibrahim in Yendi to help him address economic challenges facing the family.

Madam Zenab who is now owning a well established provisions store still engaged in farming to provide the needs of her children and pay their school fees as their father is no more in existence.

Lucky on her part, she was among the women farmers in Yendi municipal who were awarded with farm equipments by the founder of a non-profit making organization, partnership for poverty reduction (PPR), Alhaji Farouk Aliu Mahama.

Some of the equipments she got were, knapsack sprayer, wellington boots, cattlas, pesticide and weedicide to help her in the farm activities.

“I have no test of education but I have to make sure that my children are well educated to take good care of me when their done with schooling and get good jobs”.

According to her, she established the provisions store through the sales of farm products.

Her farm produce include maize, soya beans, groundnut and sweet potato.

Even though she now sales bread in an edified provisions store, she still loves getting her hands dirty. She make sure she gets involved in the day to day manual labour of farm activities.

She believes the only way for more young women to be involved in farming is to change their minds set. She also believes it starts with the message sent out about the agriculture sector has denied women the right to farm.

“The society sees farming as a career for only men but farming is for everyone and should not be associated with any gender”.

According to her, there are not limits to the positions women can fill in the agriculture sector. Young women should come out and grab opportunities and break the chain to motivate and create jobs for the generation to come.

She therefore called on benevolence organizations and government to help bridge the gap of gender inequality in the agric sector by supporting women farmers with training and farm equipments.