The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) says the gender gap in Nigeria’s agricultural productivity costs the country $2.3 billion annually, equivalent to two per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Jimmy Owani, Officer-in-Charge (OIC), FAO Representation in Nigeria and ECOWAS, said this at the commemoration of the 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer on Tuesday in Abuja.
He said closing the gap would provide a significant opportunity to accelerate agricultural transformation, strengthen food security and drive inclusive economic growth.
Owani called for urgent action to advance women’s leadership and economic power in Nigeria’s agrifood system.
He said investing in women farmers was both a social and economic imperative for national food security.
The FAO representative noted that the UN General Assembly had declared 2026 the International Year of the Woman Farmer to recognise women’s contributions to agrifood systems and accelerate efforts to remove barriers limiting their participation.
“Women are at the heart of agrifood systems.
“According to FAO’s State of Women in Agrifood Systems report, women constitute approximately 41 per cent of the global agrifood workforce and play critical roles as farmers, livestock keepers, fishers, processors, traders, entrepreneurs and innovators.
“Significant inequalities persist in access to productive resources, finance, services, technologies, markets and decision-making opportunities.
“FAO estimates that closing gender gaps in productivity and wages can add nearly one trillion US dollars to the global economy and reduce food insecurity for millions,” he said.
Owani said agriculture contributed between 22 per cent and 25 per cent to Nigeria’s GDP and supported more than 70 per cent of rural households.
He said women, who were major contributors to the country’s food supply, continued to face structural barriers.
“Women contribute an estimated 37 per cent of labour in crop production alone. Yet many continue to face barriers in accessing land, finance, agricultural services, improved technologies and leadership opportunities.
“As a result, female-managed farms often record lower productivity, not because of differences in ability, but because of unequal access to resources.
“The cost of inequality is about two per cent of Nigeria’s GDP, which is an untapped opportunity to accelerate agricultural transformation and inclusive growth,” he said.
He urged stakeholders to recognise women as decision-makers, innovators, investors and leaders in producer organisations, cooperatives, agribusinesses, financial institutions and policy platforms.
“Let us move beyond recognition to action. Let us commit to removing the barriers that constrain women’s potential, expanding opportunities for women-led enterprises, strengthening women’s leadership and ensuring that no woman farmer is left behind.
“Because when women farmers succeed, families prosper. When women-led businesses grow, rural economies flourish. When women lead, communities become stronger,” he said. (NAN)
