As part of efforts to promote food security and empower rural women, the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has launched a women-focused garden farming empowerment initiative in Zamfara State under the Renewed Hope Initiative.
The official launch, which took place in Gusau, the state capital, featured the distribution of farming tools and financial support to selected women to encourage backyard farming and improve household nutrition and income. The programme is being implemented in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security through the Every Home a Garden campaign.
Represented at the event by Hajiya Huriyya Dauda Lawal, wife of the Zamfara State Governor, Senator Tinubu described the initiative as a powerful tool for community resilience, food self-sufficiency, and economic empowerment.
“This initiative is not just about planting crops; it’s about planting hope and building resilience,” she said. “We want women to embrace this opportunity and pass the knowledge on to their daughters and sisters. The fight against hunger and poverty can begin right in our own backyards.”
Hajiya Huriyya Dauda Lawal lauded the First Lady for her vision and commitment to grassroots development, and also expressed gratitude to her husband, Governor Dauda Lawal, for providing the enabling environment for such initiatives to flourish.
She also acknowledged the support of both the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the Zamfara State Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for their technical collaboration.
“Together, let us grow, nurture, and feed our people—one home, one garden at a time,” she added.
A total of 60 women benefited from the initiative. Thirty-five received N200,000 each to start backyard gardens, while 25 women with existing gardens received a comprehensive empowerment package, including a wheelbarrow, watering can, fertilizer, hoe, and cutlass to enhance productivity.
Beneficiaries of the programme praised the First Lady for her support, pledging to make good use of the resources to boost food production at the household level.