Agriculture may seem like a male-dominated industry from the outside, but it is women who practice agriculture more, especially rural women and by a wide margin. Nigerian women make up about 70% of the country’s agricultural workforce and also contribute to 70% of the country’s food production. The contribution of women to the agricultural sector in Nigeria is largely under-recognized. According to a study carried out in 2014, some of the reasons for non-recognition are:
- Male-dominated cultures, which place women in inferior positions;
- Custom, taboos and sex-based division of labour, which keeps women subordinate to men;
- The failure of economists to place value on unpaid women’s domestic production;
- Uncertainty of women’s ability to articulate their problems and needs effectively;
- The problem of the land tenure system and the inability of women to meet basic collateral security as bank requirements for loans intended for agricultural production.
