The Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has earned commendation from the Nigerian government as its innovative agriculture extension model, Community Based Advisory, successfully reaches over 11 million farmers.
The recognition came during the Africa-Wide Agricultural Extension Week (AAEW) in Abuja, where AGRA was honored for its substantial contribution to advancing agriculture extension services in Nigeria and across the continent.
AGRA’s Country Director, Rufus Idris, revealed the transformative impact of the Community Based Advisory model, significantly reducing the gap between extension agents and farmers.
The model has evolved from one extension agent serving 5000 farmers to a more personalized approach of one extension agent per 500 farmers.
Idris outlined plans to further narrow this gap, emphasizing the success of AGRA’s agricultural model in the Nigerian context.
Under the AGRA 3.0 strategy, the organization aims to amplify its successful initiatives, extending its impact on a larger scale.
Idris underscored the effectiveness of the private sector-driven Community Based Advisory model in ensuring that farmers at the grassroots level in Nigeria gain access to essential extension services.
“We have been able to promote an agriculture model that has really worked, that is the community-based advisory model, which is mainly a model that is private sector-driven and ensures that farmers at the last mile get access to extension services,” stated Idris.
The reduction in the travel distance for farmers to access inputs was also highlighted as a significant achievement. AGRA successfully reduced the travel distance from more than 20km to less than 10km, with ongoing efforts to further minimize this distance.
The recognition from the Nigerian Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Senator Abdullahi Sabi, underscores AGRA’s decades-long commitment to promoting innovative extension services in Nigeria. Idris views the award as both validation of past efforts and a call to do more, acknowledging the ongoing challenges faced by Nigerian farmers and those across Africa who still struggle to access the right kind of extension services.
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