Non-state actors in Kaduna State have called for stronger budgetary commitment, accountability and investment to transform the state’s agricultural sector.
They made the call at a two-day consultative meeting on the Kampala Declaration on Agriculture and budget analysis and advocacy for non-state actors on Wednesday in Kaduna.
The meeting, supported by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and Synergos, was organised to strengthen the participation of civil society, the private sector, academia, the media and other stakeholders in agricultural policy and budget processes.
Victor Adejoh, Country Director of Synergos, said the organisation was providing technical assistance to the Kaduna Ministry of Agriculture.
Adejoh said the support also focused on strengthening civil society platforms capable of advocating and supporting the government to implement its agricultural commitments.
He said leveraging private sector investment was one of the six cardinal objectives of the Kampala Declaration.
According to him, African leaders recognise that governments alone cannot provide the investment required to transform agriculture and food systems.
Adejoh said Kaduna had mobilised about $42 million in agricultural investment, against a target of $50 million.
He expressed hope that the state would attain the $50-million target before the project ended.
He urged non-state actors to track government projects and assess their impact on farmers and communities across the state.
Adejoh urged civil society organisations to identify underserved local governments and ensure that government attention was directed to areas requiring intervention.
He stressed that non-state actors should work with government rather than fight it, by drawing attention to commitments and helping identify priority areas.
He called for stronger advocacy on infrastructure, access to land, credit, agricultural inputs and other challenges affecting farmers and agribusinesses.
Adejoh also urged organisations to develop specific areas of expertise, particularly budget analysis, agricultural inputs and smallholder farmer advocacy.
He said Synergos hoped the meeting would produce a sustainable non-state actors platform for continued advocacy and accountability in Kaduna.
He said the platform should also develop a memorandum for presentation at the State Council on Agriculture.
One of the non-state actors, Mr Yusuf Goje of Civic Impact for Sustainable Development Foundation, said the meeting was timely, as the 2027 budget formulation process was ongoing.
Goje said the meeting would produce a position paper to be presented as a memorandum at the State Council on Agriculture.
He added that the document would subsequently serve as an advocacy tool during the budget town hall and public hearing at the Kaduna State House of Assembly.
Goje described non-state actors as central stakeholders in agriculture because they include smallholder farmers, agribusinesses, the media, civil society and research institutions.
He said their responsibility was to ensure that government investments benefited critical areas across the agricultural value chain, from production to markets and to consumers.
According to him, the Kampala Declaration expands the focus beyond agriculture to broader agri-food systems, including nutrition, health, education and security.
Another non-state actor, Mr Adejor Abel, a member of the agricultural platform in Kaduna, said civil society groups needed to engage the state’s Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and agricultural budget process.
Abel said the Kaduna Planning and Budget Commission had released the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, providing an opportunity for stakeholders to make inputs into the 2027 budget.
He said civil society groups had also reviewed the Ministry of Agriculture’s budget implementation, with performance at about 28 per cent in the first two quarters.
Abel said stronger implementation would improve farmers’ livelihoods, create employment opportunities and contribute to Kaduna’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
He said the consultative meeting would enable stakeholders to present their observations and recommendations to government through the proposed position paper.
