Farm Junction Foundation (FJF), a subsidiary of Farm Junction Limited (Farm Junction), has announced the launch of the inaugural Most Beautiful Farmer (MBF) Lagos pageant.
The groundbreaking agricultural empowerment initiative, according to Dumebi Oluwole, one of the project coordinators, is designed to uplift and showcase Nigeria’s bountiful farming community.
“As part of Farm Junction Limited’s ongoing commitment to improving food security in Nigeria, FJF was established to focus on community development and empowerment. The Most Beautiful Farmer project programme is the foundation’s first major project created to support and celebrate Nigerian female farmers by enhancing their expertise in agricultural practices, communication, marketing, and distribution,” Oluwole said.
Also speaking at a press briefing to announce the event, Sola Rogers, another project executive in charge of running the pageant, said that the programme seeks to make farming fun by combining technical training with an innovative pageantry model.
Rogers stressed that the pilot phase of MBF will take place in Lagos State from September 15 to October 16, culminating in a grand finale on World Food Day 2024.
He further said that through strategic partnerships, including collaboration with the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture, selected participants can enhance their skills during the programme through hands-on training, mentorship, and public engagement activities.
“To ensure that all the skills acquired eventually contribute to the overarching theme of making farming fun to achieve subnational and national food security, Farm Junction arm, Junction Foundation, will be providing grand prizes, including a brand new truck to the winner, seed funding worth over N5 million and other farming tools to all the participants to improve their agricultural output and aid distribution to open markets when the programme ends. We have also set up effective monitoring practices to ensure this happens,” Rogers explained.
Oluwole also added that Farm Junction Limited’s mission is to connect farmers directly to consumers, stabilise prices, and address some of the known key challenges in Nigeria’s food value chain. She said the MBF programme is part of Farm Junction’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) mandate to empower the farming community.
“We’re thrilled to launch this innovative projectgram that highlights the importance of farmers in Nigeria while making agriculture more appealing to the younger generation,” said Dumebi Oluwole. “Through this initiative, we aim to equip farmers with the tools they need to thrive in today’s agricultural landscape, from technical skills to modern marketing strategies,” said Yinka Omogoye, CEO of Demiller Industries and Farm Junction Ltd.”
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