Youths must embrace farming now, says Reps member
The chairman , House of Representatives Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions, Monir Dan Agundi, urged Nigerian youths to embrace agriculture rather than waiting for government or white-collar jobs.
Agundi explained this during the closing ceremony of a three-day capacity-building course for the youth and women on snail and grasscutter rearing, organised by the Federal College of Agriculture, Moor Plantation, Ibadan, in conjunction with RAPGRA, under the House Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions of the National Assembly.
Dr Ifeoluwa Arowosegbe, who was a member of the National Assembly from Ekiti State, represented Agundi.
The federal lawmaker said: “The training is for snail and grasscutter farmers. What we intend to achieve with it is to create jobs for the young entrepreneurs, young school leavers, and the young men and women who want to be employers of labour. Every one of them is going home with N70,000 as start-up capital. Let them start small.
“The economy of the country is in distress at present. Even taking government jobs may not be helpful, because a university graduate takes N50,000 per month and half of it may go for renting accommodation. So, my advice is that rather than running after white-collar jobs, they should now concentrate on how they can start something on their own. There are various forms of agriculture they can embrace.”
Provost, Federal College of Agriculture, Ibadan, Dr (Mrs) Elizabeth Oluwakemi Augustus, urged the trainees to be good ambassadors of the college and join the numerous other products of the college to make the country proud.
