Nigerian women farmers are increasingly adopting solar-powered technologies to reduce production costs, minimise post-harvest losses and improve agricultural productivity, as rising diesel prices and unreliable electricity continue to threaten food production across the country.
The transition is helping farmers preserve produce, expand their businesses and reduce dependence on expensive fossil fuels, while supporting efforts to address Nigeria’s estimated $10 billion annual food losses linked to poor storage and post-harvest management.
National Secretary of the Small-Scale Women Farmers Organisation of Nigeria (SWOFON), Chinasa Asonye, said the decision to replace generators with solar energy has significantly reduced operating costs on her poultry and fish farms in Ikorodu, Lagos State.
Speaking to the media in an interview, Asonye disclosed that she previously spent almost N400,000 monthly on fuel and generator maintenance due to poor electricity supply before switching to solar energy.
She explained that the success of the investment encouraged members of her cooperative to adopt similar renewable energy solutions through affordable cooperative financing rather than commercial bank loans.
According to her, women farmers now use solar-powered pumps for irrigation, lighting for poultry production and renewable energy systems for agricultural processing, allowing them to channel more resources into expanding production instead of purchasing diesel.
Asonye added that the cooperative’s savings and loan model has enabled more women to acquire solar equipment, attracting the interest of financial institutions, including the Bank of Industry, for agricultural financing.
The growing adoption of renewable energy comes as concerns mount over Nigeria’s post-harvest losses.
Before now, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, had disclosed that the country loses more than $10 billion annually to poor storage facilities and post-harvest losses, highlighting the need for improved infrastructure across the agricultural value chain.
However, renewable energy advocates say wider access to solar-powered cold storage facilities, irrigation systems and processing equipment will help farmers preserve more food, reduce waste and strengthen food security.
Also speaking to the media, Co-Founder of Sunray Carbon Technologies, Olaedo Osoka, described renewable energy as a critical tool for addressing food insecurity, arguing that reducing post-harvest losses is as important as increasing food production.
She identified access to affordable finance as one of the biggest barriers preventing women farmers from acquiring renewable energy equipment and called for financing models that reflect the realities of rural women, including cooperative lending and equipment financing.
Osoka also urged policymakers and development partners to treat energy access and food security as interconnected priorities, stressing that greater investment in productive renewable energy would lower farming costs, increase incomes and strengthen agricultural businesses.
