The Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) programme in Kano State has expanded its community awareness campaign to eight new local government areas: Dawakin Kudu, Kumbotso, Tofa, Gwarzo, Madobi, Shanono, Minjibir, and Gabasawa. The initiative, led by the SAPZ Kano Programme, aims to inform smallholder farmers, agro-processors, traders, women, and youths about economic opportunities under the project. Hajiya Rabi Mustafa Sadiq, Knowledge Management and Communication Officer for SAPZ Kano, disclosed the development in a statement issued on Wednesday. The programme is part of a federal initiative implemented in seven states—Kano, Imo, Kaduna, Cross River, Kwara, Oyo, and Ogun—and the Federal Capital Territory, with support from the African Development Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the Islamic Development Bank, and private investors. SAPZ is designed to boost private investment in agricultural processing, enhance food security, generate employment, reduce rural poverty, and increase agriculture's share of GDP. The programme's objective includes developing zones in high food-producing areas to meet domestic demand and create exportable surpluses. It is expected to directly benefit 1.5 million households nationwide, with 50 per cent of beneficiaries being women and 40 per cent youths aged 18 to 29. In Kano and Ogun states, about 75,000 people, primarily farmers, processors, traders, and service providers, are expected to benefit directly. SAPZ Kano has profiled 15,463 smallholder farmers across 14 LGAs in 2025 and distributed climate-smart agribusiness inputs to over 12,000 farmers for rice, tomato, and groundnut production. The matching grant scheme requires female farmers to contribute 20 per cent of input costs, males 30 per cent, and youths 25 per cent, with the programme covering the balance. A Multi-Stakeholder Agribusiness Forum has also been established to improve collaboration across the agricultural value chain.
SAPZ Kano is rolling out awareness campaigns in eight new LGAs while claiming to have already profiled farmers in some of those same areas, raising questions about the sequencing of its outreach. If 15,463 farmers were profiled in 2025 across locations including Dawakin Kudu and Kumbotso, it suggests the engagement process began before the formal sensitisation campaign reached them. This overlap may mean some farmers received inputs under the matching grant scheme without full awareness of the programme's scope or conditions. For the 12,000 farmers who got climate-smart inputs, the delayed messaging could affect their ability to maximise benefits under the initiative.
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