The Minister of Youth Development, Ayodeji Olawande, and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, has rallied stakeholders to drive the Federal Government’s plan to engage six million youths in agriculture.

The initiative, known as the Youth in Agribusiness Land Trust Fund (YiALTF), is designed to boost food security, create jobs and diversify the economy by expanding youth participation in agriculture and agribusiness.

Olawande disclosed this in Abuja during the national launch of the Youth in Agribusiness Land Trust Fund, a collaboration between the Federal Ministry of Youth Development and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

The launch attracted representatives of government agencies, development partners, financial institutions, diplomatic missions, youth organisations and private sector operators, who pledged support for the programme aimed at expanding youth participation in agriculture and agribusiness nationwide.

Olawande said the initiative would transform all 42 Youth Development Centres across the country into vibrant agribusiness hubs, providing young Nigerians with access to land, finance, technology, mechanisation, mentorship, business incubation, investment support and markets.

He said: “Our vision is ambitious because the challenge before us is significant and the opportunity even greater. Through this initiative, we aim to transform all 42 Youth Development Centres into vibrant agribusiness hubs, train six million young Nigerians within the next three years, support the creation and formalisation of at least 500,000 youth-led agribusiness enterprises and connect young entrepreneurs to local and international markets.

“Today is more than the launch of a programme; it is the beginning of a bold national movement to unlock opportunities for millions of young Nigerians and position agriculture as a pathway to prosperity, innovation and economic growth.”

The minister described the initiative as a major step towards positioning agriculture as a pathway to prosperity, innovation and economic growth for millions of young Nigerians.

According to him, Nigeria’s youthful population represents the country’s greatest asset and must be empowered to drive economic transformation.

He noted that despite agriculture’s enormous potential for job creation, wealth creation and food security, access to productive land remains one of the biggest barriers preventing young Nigerians from participating in the sector.

Olawande said the ministry conducted a review of its assets nationwide and identified substantial land resources within its Youth Development Centres that could be deployed to support youth agribusiness ventures.

He added that the programme was inspired by successful models implemented by IITA and would be scaled nationwide through strategic partnerships with financial institutions, development partners, state governments and the private sector.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, said agribusiness and effective land management remained critical to achieving Nigeria’s economic growth objectives.

Bagudu said access to land consistently emerged as one of the major challenges facing young people interested in agriculture, stressing that land management reforms were essential to unlocking the country’s agricultural potential.

He cited examples from the Netherlands and Bangladesh, noting that both countries had demonstrated how efficient land utilisation and technology-driven agriculture could significantly boost productivity and exports.