Valentine Okafor
Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) Nigeria is expanding its country operations to Oyo State, southwest Nigeria, to empower and take thousands of smallholder farmers out of poverty, says the Country Director, Dr Godwin Atser.
The decision is part of the Association’s strategic plan to support national and sub-national governments to tackle the challenge of food insecurity in Nigeria, he added.
Oyo State is one of Nigeria’s leading agricultural hubs, with strong production potential in maize, cassava, soybean, rice, horticulture, and livestock. With its strategic location, expanding agro-processing base, and access to major urban markets such as Lagos, the state is well positioned to serve as a critical node in the region. However, like many high-potential regions, productivity constraints, gaps in extension service delivery, post-harvest losses, and limited market coordination continue to affect smallholder competitiveness.
As part of preparations for the take-off, Dr Atser and a delegation from SAA held a high-level strategic meeting with the Executive Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde, in Ibadan.
Discussions during the meeting focused on aligning SAA’s technical expertise with Oyo State’s agricultural transformation agenda, particularly in strengthening extension service delivery models, improving farmer access to climate-smart production practices, supporting structured market engagement, and building resilient value chains.
Dr. Atser emphasized that SAA’s entry into Oyo State builds on over three decades of sustained agricultural development work in Nigeria. Since inception, SAA operated in 24 states, where it supports smallholder farmers through capacity development, demonstration-based learning, and market-oriented extension systems.
“For more than thirty years, SAA has worked alongside federal and state institutions to strengthen agricultural extension systems and improve farmer productivity in Nigeria,” Dr. Atser said.
Oyo State Governor Engr. Seyi Makinde welcomed the proposed collaboration, describing it as timely and aligned with the state’s effort to modernize its agricultural sector.
The emerging partnership is expected to prioritize capacity building for extension agents, farmer training using demonstration models, promotion of improved climate-smart seed varieties and good agronomic practices, and stronger linkages between producers and aggregators. By leveraging lessons from its work in northern and central Nigeria, SAA aims to adapt proven approaches to Oyo’s agro-ecological and market realities.
Besides Dr Atser, the SAA delegation included Dr. Abdulhamid Gambo, Deputy Country Director, and Dr. Anjolaoluwa Fadairo, Technical Coordinator for Capacity Building.
Sasakawa Africa Association is an international development organization that has operated in Nigeria for over three decades, working to strengthen agricultural extension service delivery and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers through capacity building, technology transfer, and market-oriented interventions.