President Muhammadu Buhari has on Tuesday, urged agencies involved in agriculture to prioritize inclusion of the youth in driving modern methods of farming.
He said this at the inauguration of the National Young Farmers Scheme designed by the National Agricultural Land Development Authority.
According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, titled, ‘More youth inclusion in modern agriculture will bolster economy, improve earnings, says President Buhari’, an enabling environment will be provided for interested persons.
The statement read in part, “I have directed that all NALDA’s abandoned farm estates be retrieved to enable thousands of our young men and women to be engaged in farming.
“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.
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“In good harvest years, we may even export our surpluses and earn foreign exchange. 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 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.”
