SOURCE: National Mirror
Makurdi — Women farmers in Benue State have decried the nagging issue of land ownership as the basic challenge hindering their efforts in making impact in the agricultural sector.

The women during a two-day capacity building for small holder female farmers in the state, lamented that they were been sidelined to the backwaters of tradition and cultural belief which does not permit them to own lands.

Executive Director of Women Advocates' Research and Documentation (WARDC), Dr. AbiolaAkiyode-Afolabi, in her address at the workshop supported by USAID, said that Nigerian women play important role in food and agriculture even as the women small holder farmers constituted 80 percent of the agriculture labour force.

"Women no doubt constitute about 50 percent of the population and if women efforts are not recognised in the agriculture sector, the society might not be able to address the huge burden of hunger and poverty," she said.

Speaking also, Mrs. MimidooAchakpa of Women's Right to Education programme, regretted that land ownership for the Benue women poses more challenge than any other factor militating against their progress in farming.

"Women don't own land in Benue State even though women do bulk of the farming, yet they don't have access to owning farmlands. Men who marry between 10 and 15 wives just for farming purposes should be discouraged," Achakpa added.

• Nigeria