By Abdullahi Idris, Bauchi
In its continued effort to improve and uplift the lives of ordinary people, especially the less privileged, the Bauchi State Government, through the Office of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), has launched an empowerment program across the 20 local government area councils of the state.
Accordingly, the agency distributed a total sum of N5.5 million and 108 goats to 490 beneficiaries across the 20 LGAs to promote self-reliance.
Speaking during the distribution exercise, the Director-General of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Bauchi State Office, Mrs Lydia Shehu Gar, said the initiative marked a significant milestone in the ongoing empowerment of smallholder farmers in Bauchi State through the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), which is committed to driving sustainable development and prosperity.
According to her, other empowerment programmes already carried out include the training of SDGs desk officers, disbursement of cash support to farmers, distribution of goats, and agricultural inputs such as fertilisers, knapsack sprayers, and seedlings to teaming beneficiaries, among others. She added that the profiling of smallholder farmers across all local government areas of the state is currently ongoing.
She further explained that “today, we are empowering beneficiaries with tangible resources that can transform lives and communities.
This initiative is part of broader efforts to support livelihoods, enhance food security, and promote economic resilience. I therefore call on the beneficiaries to use these resources wisely, invest in their future, and contribute to the growth of their communities,” the DG emphasised.
Mrs Gar noted that the initiative is being supported by the Bauchi State Government through the Office of the SDGs in partnership with the African Union Development Agency and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD), aimed at strengthening smallholder farmers through agricultural value-chain support.
She further stated that the empowerment programme involves cash grants and livestock support to selected beneficiaries, particularly the less privileged, to promote self-reliance and sustainable livelihoods.
The DG disclosed that 30 beneficiaries from nine focus LGAs and 20 beneficiaries from 11 non-focus LGAs were selected for the intervention, adding that SDGs officials would monitor the programme to ensure sustainability.
She emphasised that beneficiaries were expected to rear the goats for multiplication rather than sell them, to enable more people benefit in the future, while those who received cash support were expected to improve their respective businesses.
In separate remarks, some local government chairmen commended the agency for the timely intervention and pledged to ensure effective monitoring and supervision.
Some of the beneficiaries interviewed expressed gratitude to the SDGs and AUDA-NEPAD for the gesture and promised to utilise the support judiciously in line with the objectives of the project.