Laraba MUREY
Oxfam Nigeria has disclosed that its PROSELL project aimed at reducing poverty, enhance food security, and address gender inequality has impacted over 40,000 households in Taraba State.
Program Manager, Human Development Delegation of the European Union to the Federal Republic of Nigeria and ECOWAS, Temitayo Omole, disclosed that households in Kurmi, Zing, Takum, Wukari, Donga and Ardo Ko local government areas of the state benefitted.
Omole, who was speaking at a two-day project’s close-out event in Abuja said, “The program began in 2018 precisely and the thinking behind the design of the program was primarily to address the challenge of food insecurity, to address the challenge of poverty of money, cash, and also to address the challenge of the quality of food that people have access to in rural communities.
“As part of the design of this program, we thought that by improving the skills and the capacity of rural farmers, they will be able to do better in the area of production in the area of preservation, in the area of marketing of the produce that they get from their various farms. And we are delighted that today, we’re here coming to the end of that particular milestone in our engagements.”
In his welcome remark, Country Director, Oxfam in Nigeria, Tijani Hamza, stated that the project has been a beacon of change, resilience, and empowerment in rural communities.
He pointed that the dedicated efforts staff and partners, have resulted in impressive outcomes including, “a notable 83.2% increase in livelihood assets within households, enhanced production in livestock and fish value chains for 82.1% of farmers, a significant 55% of womeri experiencing increased access to resources and control over assets and the empowerment of 35% of farmers, particularly women, contributing to improved livelihoods to mention bul a few of the achievements.”
On Oxfam’s role in empowering 35℅ of women in the PROSELL project, Hamza, explained that, “We have 35% women of them benefited extremely from that project which was targeting and putting resources there and then putting structures or systems we actually have a gender advisor and we have an objective and in all the objectives, our aggregated data related to our targets, and then of beneficiaries.”
On her part, Executive Director, Development Exchange Centre, Helen Abah, said, “The PROSELL project has truly been a beacon of positive change, contributing significantly to the lives of over 40,000 households whose livelihoods rely on agriculture and natural resource-based activities.
“Through strategic interventions encompassing best practice knowledge transfer, household and productive asset transfers, financial inclusion services, market linkages, and social safety programs, we have witnessed a transformative impact on the ground.
“But this success is not ours alone. It is a testament to the power of collaboration and the unwavering commitment of our partners. The European Union’s unwavering support, both in financial resources and technical expertise, has been instrumental.”
