The Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) has successfully concluded the 2025 Annual Farmer Organization (FO) Exchange Visit at the Assakio Rice Value Chain Development Centre (RVCDC) in Lafia Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, bringing together farmer leaders and field staff from six states for a four-day intensive learning programme.
The event, which ran from November 19 to 22, 2025, was organized under SAA’s Market-Oriented Agriculture (MOA) strategic intervention pillar with support from The Nippon Foundation. A total of 55 FO leaders and 17 field officers from Gombe, Jigawa, Kano, Nasarawa, Kwara, and Benue states participated in the fully funded programme.
The methodology enables upcoming farmer organizations to learn directly from well-established groups, encouraging knowledge exchange, teamwork, and the adoption of enterprise-driven agricultural practices.
This year’s host, the Apashi Woza Multipurpose Cooperative Society, was selected in recognition of its transformation through SAA interventions and the establishment of the MoFA-funded Assakio RVCDC, now regarded as one of SAA’s most successful agricultural hubs in Africa.
The centre currently employs over 64 workers and has generated more than ₦12 million within one year of operation.
Declaring the programme open, the SAA Nigeria Country Director, Dr. Godwin Atser, represented by Mr. Jonathan Taknan Yassah, reaffirmed that SAA’s goal is to expose participants to opportunities in market-oriented agriculture.
He urged farmers to adopt proven governance structures, enterprise models, and collective marketing strategies that have made the Apashi Woza Cooperative a sustainable success.
Speaking on behalf of the host state, Mrs. Salome Sabo, SAA State Coordinator for Nasarawa, expressed pride in the progress recorded by local farmer organizations and reaffirmed the state’s commitment to supporting agricultural transformation.
Participants from Gombe, Jigawa, and Benue States praised the initiative, describing it as eye-opening, practical, and highly motivating.
They expressed readiness to replicate the Assakio cooperative model to improve productivity, record-keeping, teamwork, and profitability among smallholder farmers in their respective states.
The 2025 FO Exchange Visit ended with participants developing action plans to strengthen their enterprise activities and drive organizational growth.
