The Sasakawa Africa Association, SAA Nigeria, has joined agricultural leaders, development partners and private-sector stakeholders in Abuja to commemorate 20 years of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, AGRA, and reflect on two decades of partnership in transforming Africa’s food systems.
The event, featured AGRA’s Impact Panel on “20 Years of Partnership and Results,” where the Country Director of SAA Nigeria, Dr Godwin Atser, participated as a distinguished panellist.
Dr Atser highlighted the role of strategic partnerships in strengthening agricultural extension services, promoting climate resilience, improving food and nutrition security, developing inclusive markets and advancing sustainable agrifood systems.
He said the long-standing partnership between SAA Nigeria and AGRA had contributed to efforts aimed at helping smallholder farmers transition from subsistence agriculture to more productive, resilient and market-oriented farming.
According to him, the partnership has supported several agricultural interventions over the years, including the AGRA Soil Health Project implemented between 2014 and 2017 in Kaduna and Kano States.
He also cited the AGRA Niger Consortium Project, implemented from 2021 to 2024, as well as ongoing interventions in Kaduna and Niger States.
Dr Atser congratulated AGRA on its 20th anniversary, noting that SAA Nigeria’s 35 years of agricultural development work in Nigeria had enabled the organisation to reach more than 20 million farmers.
He said a significant proportion of the organisation’s reach had been achieved through strategic partnerships, including its collaboration with AGRA.
The SAA Nigeria Country Director particularly highlighted the Community-Based Advisors, CBA, extension model, describing it as an important component of the organisation’s efforts to scale last-mile agricultural advisory services to smallholder farmers in Kaduna and Niger States.
He said the model had helped strengthen access to extension services while improving farmers’ capacity to adopt more productive and resilient agricultural practices.
As AGRA enters its third decade, SAA Nigeria expressed its commitment to deepening the partnership, scaling proven agricultural solutions and placing smallholder farmers at the centre of efforts to transform Africa’s food systems.
The organisation said continued collaboration among governments, development partners, the private sector and farmers would be critical to building sustainable, resilient and inclusive agricultural systems across the continent.