By Dipo Olowookere
The involvement of youth in modern agriculture will lead will bolster the economy and improve the earnings of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari has submitted.
Mr Buhari made this submission on Tuesday in Abuja when he launched the National Young Farmers Scheme, designed by the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA).
At the event, the President said he has “directed that all NALDA’s abandoned farm estates be retrieved to enable thousands of our young men and women to be engaged in farming.”
He, thereafter, urged agencies involved in agriculture to further streamline their priorities in the inclusion of youth, assuring all those interested that an enabling environment will be created for full participation.
“This administration will be achieving agricultural mechanisation through this scheme and I am confident that Nigeria, under my watch, will achieve food security in producing most of what we eat. In good harvest years, we may even export our surpluses and earn foreign exchange.”
The President described agriculture as the backbone of the Nigerian economy, being the largest contributor to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), assuring that his government will “do more to expand, modernise and revolutionise our agriculture, which is our most important asset.”
“By virtue of my passion and desire for agriculture and also as a farmer myself, I am directly supervising NALDA as an authority under the Presidency.
“I am asking the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and state governments to give full cooperation to NALDA in its activities.
“With the success of Anchor Borrowers Programme spearheaded by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and new programmes to revive cotton, palm products and cocoa, the next few years will see a vast difference in our agricultural performance,” Mr Buhari said.
The President said all the necessary approvals that NALDA requires for effective take-off, beginning with areas of adequate land preparation for crop farming and livestock rearing, had been given, charging the Executive Secretary/CEO of NALDA and his team to continue to live up to expectations and increase their activities in local communities.
“I am told that, so far, 4,333 families have benefited from this scheme and it is expected that many more individuals and families will benefit as the programme is rolled out.
“I now flag off the National Young Farmers’ Scheme. It is my expectation that the scheme will take in young Nigerians, graduates and non-graduates alike, and be part of this government’s effort to reduce unemployment and contribute to the regeneration of agriculture and our economy,” he said.
The Executive Secretary/CEO of NALDA, Mr Paul Ikonne, said the discovery of oil in the country hampered the growth of agriculture and increased poverty in rural communities, assuring the President that the concerted effort to revive interest in farming will tackle poverty and create wealth.
Ikonne said the resuscitation of NALDA after close to 20 years of abandonment will go a long way in reducing unemployment in the country, especially among the youth.
“Our focus is to engage 1,000 farmers from each of the 774 Local Government Areas, thereby creating 774,000, direct employment annually,” he added.
Adedapo Adesanya