The Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ), through the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Component 2, has rolled out a home gardening initiative to improve household nutrition and food access across Kano State.
The programme, implemented under the SAPZ Targeted Nutrition Support framework, is reaching more than 1,400 households across eight local government areas of the state.
During the official flag-off ceremony in Kano, the State Project Coordinator of SAPZ, Mr. Aminu Iliyasu, said the intervention seeks to empower women and vulnerable families to grow vegetables and nutrient-rich crops within their homes to enhance dietary quality and reduce hunger.
He identified the participating local governments as Kura, Garun-Mallam, Bebeji, Dambatta, Gezawa, Dawakin-Tofa, Bichi, and Bagwai.
According to him, the project is structured to diversify diets and ensure families have consistent access to fresh, healthy foods.
“The toolkits will provide beneficiaries with the materials and seeds needed to cultivate vegetables and small household crops best suited to their local environment,” he explained.
Iliyasu noted that the approach would help reduce household food costs, generate income from surplus produce, and promote economic resilience among rural families.
He added that the initiative was also targeted at curbing malnutrition among children under five, pregnant women, and nursing mothers through sustainable home-based food production.
In his address, the state Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Dr. Danjuma Mahmoud, hailed the effort as a transformative step toward agricultural empowerment and rural development.
Mahmoud, represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mr. Bashir Sanusi, said the scheme aligns with Gov. Abba Kabir Yusuf’s broader vision to strengthen agriculture as a tool for inclusion and poverty reduction.
He said the programme exemplifies effective collaboration between the Federal Government, the Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, state partners, and private sector stakeholders.
The commissioner reaffirmed the government’s continued investment in agricultural innovation, mechanisation, and extension services to boost productivity and ensure food self-sufficiency across communities in the state.