Federal Ministry of Youth Development has announced the launch of Compressed Natural Gas e-portal for youths in the commercial transport sector, particularly those interested in operating CNG-powered tricycles across the country.

The Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, disclosed this at a press conference in his office yesterday.

The Guardian reports that on October 1, the Federal Government, through the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PiCNG) and the ministry, commenced the distribution of 2,000 CNG-powered tricycles to empower Nigerian youths.

In his address during the event, the Project Director of PiCNG, Michael Oluwagbemi, said the distribution of tricycles marked the fulfilment of promises made by President Bola Tinubu to reduce transport costs and enhance economic well-being, among other benefits.

“Through the portal, youths from across Nigeria can sign up to be matched with aggregators or owners working directly with the PiCNG programme, while starting the process of becoming owners themselves”.

In simple terms, the youth portal we are launching aims to build transparency around the process of enlisting youth into the presidential CNG initiative in the transport sector.

“What this means is that we are opening the process, and any young person willing and ready to take advantage of the programme can participate. This aligns with the aspiration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who wants all government programmes and initiatives to offer equal opportunities to everyone, regardless of their background or status.”