By Isaac Olufemi Ojo
IBADAN — The Oyo State chapter of the Small-Scale Women Farmers Organization in Nigeria (SWOFON) has charged the state government to urgently scale up agricultural investments and ensure that approved budgets translate into tangible support for smallholder women farmers.
The organization made the call in a press statement issued in Ibadan on Wednesday, signed by its leadership, emphasizing that smallholder women remain the backbone of food production and rural livelihoods in the state.
SWOFON Oyo State coordinator, Mrs Tinuke Akinbade, while speaking today at the IBP-SWOFON SPARK II Policy Brief, highlighted a persistent disconnect between women’s participation in budget processes and the delivery of agricultural interventions.
According to the policy brief, agriculture’s share of the Oyo State budget never exceeded 4.31%between 2021 and 2025.
Furthermore, agricultural capital budget execution averaged a dismal 17.5%, marking the weakest performance among the five states evaluated under the program.
While acknowledging the state government’s openness to including women farmers in budget hearings, SWOFON stressed that participation must yield measurable outcomes.
“Receiving women farmers’ demands is not enough. Government must demonstrate how those demands are reflected in budget lines, how much is allocated, when funds are released, and what is ultimately delivered to farmers,” the group stated.
In a bid to change the narrative, the organization put forward a 6-point charter of demand for immediate action by the Oyo State Government, the State House of Assembly, and relevant Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs)
The organisation has called for Increase Investment in Agriculture, with timely, transparent release and implementation of approved capital budgets,Costed Commitments and traceable budget lines with clear timelines, and request for integration into state and local government agricultural planning, backed by documented responses to presented priorities.
Furthermore, they requested that the highlighted authorities provide Secure Land Access for members, Budget Transparency to foster public accountability, and Expansion of support to extension services, irrigation, storage facilities, processing plants, and provision of reliable market access to guarantee economic returns.
While SWOFON warned that as Nigeria grapples with the imperatives of food security and economic resilience, Oyo State cannot afford to marginalize the women who feed its communities.
The group however urged Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration, local government councils, and development partners to bridge the chasm between policy pronouncements and on-the-ground impact, ensuring that future agricultural budgets actively work for women farmers.
