As part of Activity to facilitate economic recovery and growth in vulnerable, conflict affected areas by promoting system change in market systems, Feed the Future Nigeria has Monday trained journalists from the North East states in promoting women economic empowerment (WEE) and participation in agribusiness and microenterprises.
The activity aimed at giving families and communities from the North East region opportunity to lift themselves out of food insecurity and malnutrition and also empowers vulnerable households, communities and systems to cope with current shocks and to be prepared to withstand future ones.
The Feed the Future Nigeria Rural Resilience Activity is a five-year, USAID-funded program implemented by Mercy Corps, with support from the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) and Save the Children (SCI), primarily in the Northeast states of Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, and Yobe.
Using market-led approaches, the activity will move over 540,000 individuals out of chronic vulnerability and poverty.
In her opening remarks at the training, Margarita Ravi Aswani, Chief of Party-Rural Resilience Activity (RRA) Mercy Corps, said USAID funded the program and implemented by Mercy Corps in partnership with the International Fertilizer Development Center and Save the Children, works primarily in Yobe, Borno,Adamawa and Gombe states.
She stated that the partnership with the media is an opportunity to truly impact Women’s Economic Empowerment in Nigeria together, by creating a shared understanding of the contributions that women are making in market systems in the North East.
“We believe that the media is a critical agent of socialization, controlling the narratives around Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI). This is why we are engaging with the media today to share critical learnings and evidence-based information to support the narratives that improve the perception of marginalized populations, including women and promote behavioral change towards true Economic Empowerment,” said Margarita.