The Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Geoffrey van Leeuwen, has applauded the Youth in Agribusiness, Enabling the Scaling of Innovative Technologies for Sustainable Food Solutions (YAS) project of IITA–CGIAR for exposing more youth to high-tech agriculture through training and other support initiatives.
Speaking during his recent visit to the Golden Finger Farms and Ranches, the YAS Agrihub in Abuja, where selected young people were trained in the aquaculture value chain, the Minister said if the Netherlands could be the second largest exporter of agricultural products globally despite its 18 million population, Nigeria could harness its population, especially the youth demographic, to boost its agricultural productivity.
He added that YAS would help Nigeria attain food security and reduce youth unemployment, as he noted that the youth remained the future of Nigeria.
The Minister stated, “The youths are the future of Nigeria. The Netherlands’ driving force is not only agriculture but agriculture, technology, science, and business, and we combine these for our agricultural sector. It’s really wonderful for the Netherlands to participate in this project.”
He noted, “In the Netherlands, when you talk about farming, it’s not traditional farming. Rather, farming means business that includes the use of technology, exportation of goods, and making of money. We are not just reaching you (the trainees), but through you, we are reaching companies, which will also impact the economy.”
He said the Netherlands was willing to share knowledge with Nigeria that could help develop its agricultural sector.
The GFFR Chairman, Major General Ezra Jakko (rtd), speaking on the collaboration with YAS, assured the trainees that GFFR was putting in place more facilities to broaden the commodities they would be exposed to. “So as to give them more opportunities to practice what they are learning and to expand their vision and dreams,” he said.
Similarly, YAS team lead Aline Mugisho applauded the partnership and support of the Netherlands government.
She added, “YAS is an important project to all of us. The CGIAR and IITA are long-term partners of the Netherlands Government, and we have built sustainable partnerships over the last 25 years in developing technologies and innovations.”
Contributed by Babatunde AjajaContributed by
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