Advancing Gender Equality in Fragile Food Systems in the Sahel

Pastoralist populations face more inequities and inequalities due to their seasonal migration. These hinder efforts to include them in demographic information and health services planning. They inhibit the most remote and harshest terrains on earth which prevents them from accessing healthcare services that sedentary populations have access to. As a result, the efforts made toward universal health coverage in many low-and-middle-income countries do not reach the pastoralist communities. Pastoral women in Nigeria are particularly disadvantaged. Women and girls in these communities experience disparities in accessing essential health services, leading to poor health outcomes, and exacerbating existing gender inequalities. Understanding and addressing these health challenges is crucial for achieving sustainable development and ensuring the well-being of all individuals within these communities.

Accessing credit by farmers is central to enhancing productivity and income. Traditionally, farmers access credit facilities through formal, semiformal, and informal sources in various regions of the country. The formal sources include all formal financial institutions, especially commercial banks, micro-finance banks, and the Bank of Agriculture (BOA). Similarly, farmers can opt for credit from cooperative societies and other Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) which constitute the semi-formal sources of credit. Likewise, farmers can access credit through informal sources, particularly from family and friends, money lenders and women groups which constitute the informal sources. This policy brief is the second in the series of communication to policy and decision makers as well as other researchers on the on-going research project of the Centre for Population and Environmental Development (CPED) titled “Empowerment of Women in Pastoralism and Agriculture in Nigeria’s Sahel Region”.