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October 27, 2022

2SCALE celebrates 10 years of promoting inclusive agribusiness in Nigeria

Animal Production Related
Staple Crops
Soy and Oil Seeds
Fresh Produce
Nigeria

On the 17th of October 2022, the 2SCALE Nigeria team celebrated the 10th anniversary of the 2SCALE program in a grand style at Fraser Suites Abuja. The event had in attendance different participants who are key players in the agricultural sector in the country. Also in attendance were actors from the first phase, as well as present partnerships. Key financial institutions such as LAPO MFB, Cintrust MFB and Sterling bank also graced the event.

The event highlighted the approach 2SCALE uses to propel inclusive agribusiness while recognizing the strides made over the last decade. Another key highlight was how the program has strengthened and promoted the growth and sustainability of agricultural value chains in northern and southern Nigerian states. 

The event had four panel sessions discussing the lessons learnt, grass root empowerment, access to markets, Base of Pyramid marketing and reflections. Other thematic areas where 2SCALE in Nigeria is leading change were also discussed.

The first panel session was on lessons learnt from the 2SCALE program and Mayowa Ekundayo, the CEO of Mayun Global Concept, who is the Business Support Service Provider (BSS) in the vegetable syndicate partnership of Royal Blue contractors and VD&S has been able to increase his labour force by 400% cutting across 4 states in western Nigeria. He narrated how the partnership has enhanced inclusivity while providing viable solutions to farmers.

I have been able to engage women and youth in my activities while identifying opportunities in the vegetable value chain. 2SCALE is contributing to the accelerated increase in youth employment. With the support of 2SCALE, youths are solving critical food problems and enjoying economic benefits within and outside the scope of the 2SCALE vegetable syndicate partnership.

Said Mayowa.

Still speaking on the impact of 2SCALE, Hadiza Yaro, Country manager of East West Seeds Nigeria, highlighted how the use of CASE (Competitive Agricultural Systems and Enterprises) approach through the formation of Agribusiness clusters and value chain proposition has brought together grassroots actors and empowered producer organizations as well as smale scale farmers.

For the sorghum partnership with Adefunke Desh, 2SCALE has enabled them to work directly with smallholder farmers. This is a major challenge they faced before partnering with 2SCALE. Micheal Adeoluwa Adeshola, MD Adefunke-Desh Group said 2SCALE has enabled actors in the sorghum value chain to develop a robust activity that involves understanding the peculiar challenges within the value chain by creating ways to support smallholder farmers through Village Savings and Loaning Associations (VSLAs) and increased access to inputs.

Enabling grassroots empowerment while developing nutritious food products for low-income consumers.

The guided exhibition featured products from Cato foods, AACE foods, FrieslandCampina WAMCO (FCW), Crystal dominion, L&L Foods, Tay’s food, Nestle, Okomu Oil Palm, Royal Blue & VD&S, and many others. The partners had an opportunity to enlighten and market their products made specifically for Base of the Pyramid (BoP) consumers. They also used the exhibition as an opportunity to highlight the nutritional values and the best consumption patterns of their products.

Speaking on the replication cases on grassroot empowerment and access to markets, Okomu Oil Palm has been able to integrate 3467 smallholder farmers with over 500 of them now having access to quality Tenera seedlings. Also, more than 1500 BoP consumers have access to nutritious cooking oil.

The coming of 2SCALE has been a game-changer for Fulani milk producers. Their incomes and livelihoods have significantly improved. Through the partnership between FCW and 2SCALE, opportunities have been identified in the dairy sector by promoting youth and women inclusion in all aspects of milk collection to transportation. Milk production has spread from 3-5 clusters to over 500 clusters in Oyo state and other states in the country including Abuja.

While availing safe and nutritious foods to BoP consumers, co-founder Atinuke Lebile of Cato Foods shared how working with 2SCALE has helped in the expansion of out-grower farmers programs. 2SCALE has helped her company access bio-fortified vitamin A cassava through input services and good agronomic practices. Within two years, Cato Foods now produces suitable nutritious products for BoP consumers. They have also improved on their product design and packaging which protects the product from the direct impact of the sunlight whose effect breaks down the vitamin A in the product. 

In the groundnut partnership with L&L Foods, the business champion said that he now understands the groundnut value chain better, and the company has built strong networks with smallholder farmers in Kwara state. Having a supply system from these farmers has enhanced processing since there is availability of nuts for processing. In addition, 2SCALE supported the product development process of Mr. Ekpa peanut burger. Consumer acceptability and marketing was initially a challenge but with the partnership, these issues have now been resolved.

In attendance were representatives from the 2SCALE consortium, as well as other development agencies.

Dr. Chris Okafor from IDH highlighted the need for partnerships in meeting food demands in a country like Nigeria. For him, the 2SCALE program has made great strides to promote inclusivity in the agriculture sector in Nigeria, and this is a huge milestone.

As a program, we are thrilled to have for a decade, collaborated with local actors to build sustainable and inclusive agribusinesses in Nigeria. The support from the Federal Government of Nigeria has created an enabling environment for collaboration with various development partners for peaceful coexistence.

In conclusion, Mercy Mayaki (Country Representative-Nigeria BopInc) hinted at some key aspects that need more focus by saying, 

There is still a lot more to be done in new markets by increasing the knowledge of BoP consumers to the availability of nutritious foods across various communities in the country. Emphasis should be made on youth involvement through improved access to technology to increase yield in the agricultural sector. Increased access to finance through loans will go a long way in bridging the gaps in the agricultural sector.
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