Abuja: The FCT Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat (ARDS) has announced that the World Bank has approved a request for the second phase of the FCT FADAMA COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) programme. This development was disclosed by the Mandate Secretary of ARDS, Mr. Lawan Geidam, during the inauguration of the Pre-Field training of Enumerators responsible for gathering field data for the FCT FADAMA CARES programme.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the event, which took place in Gwagwalada, marked a significant step in the Endline and Beneficiaries Impact Assessment Survey. The Federal Government had initially requested additional financing to sustain the CARES programme following the achievements of the first phase, FCT FADAMA (NG-CARES 1.0), nationwide. The World Bank has since approved this request and rebranded the initiative as the Nigeria Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES 2.0), set to begin in June.
The training session is part of the technical closure processes for the first phase of the NG-CARES programme. Geidam highlighted that under NG-CARES 1.0, grants were successfully disbursed to 12,423 individual beneficiaries from 181 Farmers Community Associations across the FCT, with 66 percent of disbursements occurring within less than two years of the programme’s initiation. The FCT CARES Programme aims to aid farmers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, providing support since 2022.
Geidam praised the achievements of the FCT FADAMA CARES programme in its first phase and assured beneficiaries of continued support from the secretariat as they embark on the second phase. He encouraged trainees to utilize the opportunity provided by the programme to enhance their knowledge, which would facilitate the successful conduct of the endline and beneficiary impact assessment survey.
The Acting FCT FADAMA CARES Coordinator, Hussaini Iliyasu, stated that the FCT CARES aims to bolster food security and maintain the safety of food supply chains. The programme, supported by the World Bank, targets vulnerable and poor households engaged in agricultural value chains within the FCT. He assured that the team remains committed to ensuring the successful closure of NG-CARES 1.0 and the launch of NG-CARES 2.0.
Mr. Uba Bala, the FCT CARES Coordinator, mentioned that the World Bank recommended conducting an Implementation Completion Report to assess the programme’s performance and derive insights for future improvements. The event also featured the handover of office equipment to the FCT FADAMA CARES desk offices across the six area councils.