The Nationwide Agricultural Growth Fund has referred to as for a stronger emphasis on abilities acquisition within the Agri-Tech sector to reinforce agricultural productiveness and create employment alternatives for Nigerian youth.
Talking at a stakeholders’ roundtable on Nigerian Youth Growth, organised by the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Basis in Abuja, NADF’s Govt Secretary, Mohammed Ibrahim, underscored the significance of merging agricultural data with rising applied sciences to organize the youth for the long run workforce and deal with meals safety challenges.
In a press release launched on Monday in Kaduna, the Director-Normal of the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Basis, Abubakar Umar, recommended NADF for its dedication to fostering Agri-Tech talent growth in Nigeria.
“We’re happy to assist NADF in its efforts to advance Agri-Tech talent growth in Nigeria,” Umar mentioned.
Ibrahim highlighted the huge alternatives obtainable to Nigerian youth in agriculture, significantly throughout the rising Agri-Tech sector, the place expertise intersects with farming.
He famous that whereas technological developments in agriculture are evolving quickly, the sector has but to completely harness these improvements.
“The foremost alternative for youth throughout the agricultural panorama lies on the nexus of expertise and agriculture, also known as Agri-Tech. Whereas expertise continues to advance quickly, Agri-Tech stays underexplored and underutilised,” Ibrahim mentioned.
Drawing from his expertise within the area, Ibrahim shared insights from founding two profitable Agri-Tech firms.
He defined that NADF is actively working to bridge the abilities hole in agriculture by creating coaching frameworks aligned with international requirements.
“This effort features a partnership between NADF and the Nationwide Board for Technical Schooling (NBTE) to implement a Nationwide Agricultural Technical, Vocational, and Instructional Coaching Programme. This initiative focuses on addressing vital abilities gaps in areas akin to soil science, veterinary drugs, and digital mapping—abilities important for contemporary farming,” he mentioned.
Ibrahim introduced that NADF plans to launch a pilot scheme throughout Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones. “This initiative will span six days and can present agricultural abilities tailor-made to the precise agro-ecological wants of every area,” he said.
Recognising the monetary challenges confronted by younger Nigerians getting into the agricultural sector, Ibrahim emphasised the significance of NADF’s balanced method to industrial and social funding fashions.
“This method goals to ease the monetary burden on smallholder farmers and youth entrepreneurs, fostering sustainable agricultural development and job creation,” he added.