The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) has empowered 1900 participants nationwide under the Post Sustainable Agricultural Development Training Scheme (SADTS). The empowerment which was carried out in the 36 states and the FCT, Abuja, was to enhance skills in agricultural performances and improve food supply to the country.

Some of the participants, having been granted loans of N100,000 each, are expected to improve on their farm input and productivity to reduce poverty. Minimum number of 50 participants, who hitherto were beneficiaries of NDE agric programmes and schemes from each of the 36 states across the federation and the FCT Abuja, were selected to benefit from the exercise.

At the training in the Agric Skill Centre, Bwari, FCT Abuja, the  Director-General, NDE, Mallam Abubakar Nuhu Fikpo, said the government was doing all it could to encourage the youth to accept agriculture as means of livelihood.

“Government has expanded the scope of sources of funding for agricultural projects with the aim of enhancing quality of life for farmers and society as a whole”. The Post Sustainable Agricultural Development Training Scheme aims at empowering the beneficiaries to establish, grow and expand agric-enterprises of their choice on a sustainable basis.

“Most importantly, training the participants on the modern agricultural best practices would ultimately assist the participants to be more profit oriented in their businesses with the ability to repay their loans for others to benefit,” Fikpo said.

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A total of 5,508 participants had benefitted from loan empowerment after the mandatory completion of agric training schemes  ranging from Agricultural Enhancement Scheme (AES), Community Based Agricultural Development Empowerment Scheme (CBADES), Graduate Agricultural Empowerment Scheme (GAES) and Community Based Agricultural Development Empowerment Scheme (CBADES).  The soft loans with nine percent interest ,has six months moratorium.The Director-General, said the Post SADTS training is “a specialized one week intensive agric-coaching exercise with structured interventions in agricultural practices to improve seeds, seedlings and productivity for better harvest”. He added that the exercise is also to assist the beneficiaries enhance capacity and knowledge towards bumper harvest.

The Rural Employment Promotion Programme of the NDE under which the empowerment took place was designed with the objectives of generating rural employment and improving incomes through agri-business engagements, promoting the adoption of improved technologies in post-harvest handling, good storage as well as promoting other non-farm rural employment activities in order to stem the rural – urban drift.

Multidiscipline practice firm McKinsey estimates the global wellness market to be worth  $1.5 trillion. This follows rising consumer interest in natural products in an array of areas, such as skincare, cosmetics and herbal remedies. In Nigeria, consumers have overwhelmingly indicated a preference for natural/herbal products. This has created opportunities for entrepreneurs providing natural remedies. They are smiling to the bank. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

The global wellness market is healthy and growing, according to multidiscipline practice firm McKinsey. It estimates the global wellness market to be worth $1.5 trillion. This follows  consumers  preference for natural and herbal products to address fertility, aging, body cleansing, nutrition and various ailments. The sector has brought effective, affordable natural solutions to improve overall health outcomes. As  a result,  growth opportunities are enormous. In recent years, the industry has recorded impressive growth. There are many entrepreneurs involved in small scale manufacturing of wellness products.

One of them is the co-founder, AfrOganiks Industries, Dr. Jephter Akaehie. He is the inspiration and aspiration of most budding  youths. He started his entrepreneurial journey as a motivational speaker. At 23, he became one of the nation’s most sought-after inspirational speakers. As Managing Director, Power Edge Resources, Akaehie ran a youth training company dedicated to maximising human capital. Refusing to be confined to one entrepreneurial lane, he has become a force across the nature wellness  industry.

A visionary entrepreneur, Akaehie located the potential in alternative health products  and made it a successful venture.  AfrOganiks Industries was founded with the goal of incentivising healthy lifestyles with a little extra spending money.  The company has been involved  in the organic and wellness products industry for more than a decade now.

His words: “ So far, we have raised over 250 successful entrepreneurs within Nigeria and West Africa. We started out with organic fertility products which are clinically tested and proven with over 99,459 variable success stories .”  Through the venture, he has taken herbal remedies and products to a new level, further making people conscious about wellness benefits and advantages. His goal is to revive consumers’ trust in herbal products and remedies and highlight their safe and indeed nature-friendly aspect of consumption. He has dedicated himself to deploying a wide range of herbal healthcare products that  are scientifically formulated and carefully manufactured with green ingredients.

“We have AfrOganiks herbal cleanser bitters, products for prostate enlargement, pile, wellness tea for reducing blood pressure, sugar level, improving body metabolism and many more undergoing research in our clinical laboratory. He now has retailers  reaching out to him  on a regular basis with interest to solve unaddressed problems for Nigerians. He said they were  making money selling the products. There is a  yearly commission of N3,500,000 once the target is met  He is happy that the business has changed people’s lives.

Ordinary people have been turned into millionaires. Some of them are now house owners. For him, entrepreneurship is just not about making money, but  also about enjoying the challenges and overcoming them successfully. For him, being an entrepreneur is about creativity and limitless ideas, and not putting oneself into one box. He loves learning the nuts and bolts of how to run any  business. So far, he has found out that becoming an entrepreneur is not a piece of cake. That it requires persistent and rigorous efforts to establish a name in the industry.

A leading real firm, Elite Castle Limited, has won in two categories at the International Property Awards in Dubai.

The firm won the Best Residential Property Developer and Best Residential Development For 20-Unit +Nigeria.

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The real estate giant was also named a five-star qualifier.

Its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr Ikechukwu Osita Ifeabunike, said:”It was a delightful and promising night for developers who gathered together from all over the globe. It is an honour to have Elite Castle Limited represent our great country Nigeria.”

The International Fertiliser Association (IFA) and Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) are accepting applications for entrepreneurs from Nigeria and the rest of world providing innovative solutions for improving crop yield and quality, improving soil health, improving nutrient management performance, and facilitating market access.

Themed Africa AgTech Startup Showcase, elected startups will be awarded a cash prize of €20,000 and the opportunity to showcase their startup solution at the IFA annual conference.

UM6P said  Africa Agtech Startup Showcase is opened to entrepreneurs offering innovative responses to the challenges facing African agriculture to showcase their solutions to the plant nutrition industry.

The IFA and UM6P judges will evaluate applications based on the competition criteria including impact, innovation and applicability to African smallholder farmers. Final selection will take place in May 2023 at the IFA Annual Conference, the largest gathering of the fertilizer industry, and the winning startup will receive a €20,000 prize.

UM6P President, Hicham El Habti noted:

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“We are pleased to partner with IFA to develop the Africa Agtech Startup Showcase. This initiative stems from our unwavering commitment to stimulate innovation and entrepreneurship on the African continent and contribute to its inclusive and green development across all areas of activity, including agriculture.”

To be eligible, startups  are required to have  a minimum viable product (MVP).

Also, startup must have received less than € 20 million in funding since its establishment from external sources and is less than 10 years old.

IFA Chief Executive/Director General,Alzbeta Klein, remarked;

“The International Fertilizer Association created the Smart&Green platform in 2021 to bridge the AgTech ecosystem and providers of plant nutrition solutions. As a next step, we are partnering with UM6P to help connect entrepreneurs with potential partners and investors through the Africa AgTech startup showcase. And all of this to ultimately help feed the world sustainably.”

Some organisations are driving new technologies in agribusiness to help farmers and investors. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

Technology has transformed Japan’s agriculture, increased its exports and groomed new entrepreneurs. This has increased youth enterprises.

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has been helping rural enterprises to improve agricultural yields. Yields of rice increased from two to 6.6 tonnes per hectare.

The agency’s rice project is boosting the incomes of smallholder farmers.

Japanese companies have keyed in market-oriented smallholder producers empowerment programme aimed at improving smallholder farmers and through capacity building.

Agriculture

JICA and Office for Nigerian Digital Innovation (ONDI) have launched a credit scoring modelling project for smallholder farmers in Nasawara and Ondo states.

The launch was in partnership with Zowasel Inc. and Mitsubishi Corporation Nigeria Limited. The credit scoring project is implemented in Kawo village in Doma Local Government Area of Nasarawa State and Bamikemo village in Ileoluji/Oke-Igbo Local Government Area of Ondo State. It started in June, this year. 

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The project would expand to other states in the near future.

Other Japanese corporations are teaming up with agricultural technology startups to facilitate access to affordable agricultural machinery for smallholder farmers.

Honda Manufacturing Nigeria Limited has been engaging agro entrepreneurs involved in farming of vegetables, spices, horticulture, cash crops, orchards and nurseries, among others.

It has introduced economical tools like ground-breaking, pulverising, furrow & ridge formation and de-weeding operations efficiently.

Managing Director, Honda Manufacturing Nigeria Limited, Hirohide Ichikawa said the future of agriculture lies in increased mechanisation of routine farm operations and helping agro entrepreneurs to boost farm productivity.

Its FQ650 power tiller makes it affordable for farmers to operate profitable daily farm operations by carrying out various farm operations such as ground-breaking, pulverising, furrow and ridge formation and deweeding operations efficiently.

With the digital transitioning into every industry, the disruption has taken place in  the travel and tourism industry, where there occurs a tectonic shift in the hiring trends and the job opportunities.

Jigaa Tradings Limited, managed by the company’s Chief Executive Officer(CEO), Nigeria-born-German, Olukolade Olajiga, is  providing opportunities  for Nigerians to make money through the promotion of tourism. Nigerians can make money through affiliate partnerships  to link people to tourism destinations, he said.

For Olajiga, tourism is an important tool to improve the income and thus the economy.

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According to Olajiga, Jigaa Tradings’ services include a travel/tourism agency and a website: www.jigaatradings.com, which includes travel guides, sections for fashion, and beauty, sports, health, parenting as well as features page.

The Managing Director, Stella Olajiga, a journalist and risk service advisor, noted that Jigaatradings is ready to travel the world with clients to showcase their events on appropriate channels.

“The company’s goal is to deliver positive results. We will provide insight and information and search for new best practices,’’ she said.

Employees of Jigaa Tradings come from a wide range of backgrounds each bringing their unique talents to the team. our contact details are on www.jigaatradings.com

 

There are moves to provide youths with the skills to develop themselves and overcome barriers to employment. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

The government is backing apprenticeships and supporting programmes that help young people transit to employment.

The number of modern apprenticeship  and employability skills training has risen nationwide. In Lagos, there are programmes for youths to develop the life skills to find meaningful employment.

Chairman, Knowledge Exchange Centre (KEC), Charles Nwodo Jr said the economy has faced new technologies that have affected the  ways people work, urging youths  to acquire  foundational skills to thrive in the evolving workforce.

While workplaces are  adopting new technology and rethinking critical skill needs, he noted that this has introduced high rates of job vacancy,  which requires a renewed commitment to skills and talent development across businesses at every level.

He said Nigeria is facing labour shortages, yet the untapped pool of talent is large.

According to him, employers have long pointed to the difficulty in finding people with the skills they need to operate and grow their businesses.

To this end, he called on the youth to acquire employability skills that will help them launch into the broader workforce.

KEC, Nwodo Jr explained,help job seekers to benefit from opportunities to take placements, internships, practicums and other experiential learning. This, he added, helps  to put learning into context, establish employability skills, connect with an employer network and build confidence.

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He continued that the centre offers relevant training programmes to meet today’s needs in areas such as digital marketing, entrepreneurship, business resilience and workplace diversity.

Executive Secretary, KEC, Ajibade Adedapo, said the non-governmental organisation (NGO) recognises the importance of investing in youths and helping break down barriers to employment.

To this end, he said,  it runs programmes to  give young Nigeria the support they need to launch a meaningful career.

The programme, according to him, consists of a skills session followed by work experience. During the session,he  explained,  participants take part in employability skills training online.

According to him, participants have access to a milestone-based curriculum that is tailored to their individual needs and focusing on essential skills. He explained that its  Graduate Advancement Programme Network ((GAP) Network is the game changer for unemployed graduates in Nigeria were young graduates.

In collaboration with the Lagos State Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment, he said KEC wants to make sure that every Nigerian who wants to work, has the chance to.

Through the Graduate Advancement Programme Network, he said the  organisation is investing in programmes that help youths across the country get the skills and support they need to get a job, and go to work with confidence.

The GAP Network, he noted, was designed to be a three-month programme but has been modified to 10 weeks, two weeks of the instructor-led training (employability skills) and eight weeks of technical skills training. The programme, he continued,encompassed the components needed to help graduates secure meaningful employment and accelerate career growth through training, career counselling, mentoring, internship and a structured support system for its alumni.