Women Farmers Advancement Network Factsheet

• Founded in 1993
• WfWP member since 2008
• Mission: To relieve hunger and poverty, to educate people about the causes and effects of poverty, and help them find ways to help themselves, through mobilization, sensitization, training, advocacy to claiming rights to land, and political and economic empowerment of people in Northern Nigeria and some neighbouring countries sharing the same socio-economic background.
• Focus area: Kano, Katsina, Bauchi, Sokoto and Kaduna states, Nigeria
• Level: Local, national
• Main themes: Agriculture, Water and Sanitation, Environment, Training and Consultancy services
• Beneficiaries: 45,000  
• Staff: 28
• Volunteers: 40
• Members:1,500 groups of 30 members each   

 Milestones
​
WOFAN works in rural Nigeria on access 
to safe water and sanitation for improved livelihoods, on rainwater harvesting
 and wastewater management for irrigation purposes. These initiatives have led to the production of cash crops, rather than reliance on subsistence farming. WOFAN trains women and young people in hand pump repairs and maintenance, making them more self-sufficient in solving their problems.
 
Wash
An important aspect of WOFAN’s approach is capacity building. At the grassroots level, WOFAN supports the development of women self-help groups to become part of the WOFAN network
 and benefit from trainings and projects. WOFAN has registered 1,500 community groups with over 2,250 members, of which 60 groups are particularly active. At state level, WOFAN has engaged and coached nine wives of state governors as WASH Ambassadors, who actively promote gender mainstreaming in the water and sanitation sector. As a result, every local administration in Katsina state now addresses WASH issues and includes women at the grassroots level in decision-making processes so that the outcome is more gender-responsive and addresses the needs of the community at large.

A joint WOFAN-USAID project in Northern Nigeria provided access to adequate water and sanitation, while empowering women 
to actively participate in decision-making, service delivery, and maintenance. The project resulted in the installation of 200 boreholes with hand pumps, 286 pit latrines, 126 urinals and 42 hand washing facilities for 120 primary schools and non-formal learning centers in participating states.
 
Climate-resilient sustainable agriculture

WOFAN partnered with the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in a two-year project on climate resilient agriculture. The project addressed all aspects of the agricultural value chain – from seed multiplication and crop agronomy, improved processing and preservation methods, packaging and storage, to opening up market outlets and building business management skills of women and young farmers in Northern Nigeria. WOFAN’s demonstration farm has trained 25 women to work with women in their respective communities, reaching 1250 participants who have planted drought-resistant, high-yielding seeds, resulting in increased crop yields and three harvests per year.
 
Awareness raising and advocacy

WOFAN, has taken part in many activities aimed at helping farmers’ organisations and rural communities to define or implement their own information and communication management strategies and giving a voice and opportunity to the rural communities through:
 

• Weekly radio and TV series programmes
• Functional literacy programmes on Air on weekly basis
• Training stakeholders on the prioritization of methodology of information themes
• Production of various information and training materials
• Publication of news letters
• Establishment of mechanisms to facilitate information flow (the improvement of information management and information sharing has smoothened up networking between and within rural communities)

 
Training and other services
 
WOFAN provides certain training to its group borrowers specially to strengthen their business, including pre-loan short courses in:

• Loans management; Banking and bookkeeping;
• Enterprise management; and
• Good processing and preservation.

Additionally, because of WOFAN’s commitment to women’s economic and social development, the institution provides an array of training to its members, including courses in:

• Advocacy and Leadership skills;
• Participatory tools, including self-assessment;
• Health;
• Environmental hygiene; and
• Literacy.

​​For more information visit the WOFAN website: ​​ www.wofan-ng.org

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