The European Union-Agriculture Value Chain Facility and Transformative Agricultural Systems for Rural Economic Development (EU-VACE TARED) project has trained 1,036 farmers, including women and young people, in Kano, Kaduna, and Plateau states to address critical challenges in the tomato and ginger value chains.
The training sessions, which took place in December 2025, combined participatory classroom instruction with field demonstrations to tackle issues such as seasonal variability, post-harvest losses, and limited access to modern techniques.
The initiative focused on equipping participants with the skills to establish nurseries using seedling trays, combat soil-borne diseases, and implement efficient dry-season production methods.
Early results suggest the training is already making a difference.
By February 2026, many farmers are already producing healthier and more uniform seedlings, with crops showing stronger growth in the field.
The programme also triggered a rapid community-wide adoption of improved agronomic practices, significantly increasing the capacity for women and youth to participate meaningfully in agricultural production.
“People in our community have started coming to see the nursery we established after the training. Some of them are already copying the method because they can see how healthy the seedlings are,” said Amina, a participant from Kano State.
The EU-VACE TARED project, Agriculture Value Chain Facility (EU) Transformative Agriculture Systems for Rural Economic Development (BMZ), is co-financed by the Delegation of the European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The project is implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
It sought to create sector-wide impacts in Nigeria’s agri-food systems by bringing together government, private sector, and civil society stakeholders to co-create inclusive solutions across the tomato, cocoa, ginger, and dairy value chains.
Source: GIZ Nigeria and ECOWAS
