Kuje, FCT, 4 August 2025 — The Foundation for Sustainable Smallholder Solutions (FSSS) has announced a strategic partnership with the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), an organisation chaired by the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, to launch the Initiative’s FCT Kuje Pilot Project. The project is designed to empower women and women with disabilities through sustainable agricultural opportunities.
Operating under the umbrella of the Women Agricultural Support Program (WASP), Youth Agricultural Support Program (YASP) and Every Home A Garden (EHAG), FSSS will provide market linkages and business-strengthening services to help participants build viable agricultural enterprises.
The launch event, held in Kuje on Monday, 4 August 2025, was attended by the Foundation’s Team Lead, Farmer Timothy Azakere, and the Partnerships & Grant Mobilisation Manager, Eric Nyikwagh. Both engaged with key stakeholders to explore collaboration in the vegetable and bio-fortified foods value chain, with a particular focus on scaling the cultivation of orange-fleshed sweet potatoes and expanding the home garden initiative.
Speaking at the event, Eric Nyikwagh described the collaboration as “a welcome development and an integral step towards supporting persons with disabilities while driving growth in Nigeria’s agricultural sector.”
He added: “Our theme for the year is ‘Growing Together’, and this partnership embodies that spirit. We are seeking more partnerships to strengthen the agricultural sector one collaboration at a time towards a food-secure Nigeria.”
As part of the agreement, FSSS is sponsoring six beneficiaries in Kuje for a four-month free vegetable seedling production training at Ajima Farms, one of the Foundation’s Farmers’ Hubs. The training, valued at ₦500,000 per participant, will be fully funded by FSSS. Upon completion, beneficiaries will also receive free seedlings to kick-start their farming operations.
Farmer Timothy Azakere emphasised the alignment between the project and the Foundation’s mission, stating: “This partnership reflects our vision for a Nigeria where smallholder farmers thrive and where women, especially women with disabilities, are empowered through agriculture. These groups are often overlooked, and we are committed to ensuring they have the skills, resources and market opportunities they need to succeed.”
Through this collaboration, FSSS and RHI aim not only to equip women and women with disabilities with agricultural skills, but also to foster sustainable livelihoods, increase household food production and strengthen local food systems.
“At FSSS, we believe that empowering women in agriculture is not just an economic intervention, it is a social transformation,” Eric concluded. “Together, we can build an agricultural future that leaves no one behind.”