The Oyo State Government and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) have launched a €2.4 million agricultural project aimed at empowering about 700 youths and reducing irregular migration.
The Youth Empowerment and Reintegration Project (YERP), funded by the Danish Government, targets people aged 18 to 35, particularly youths in rural communities and returnee migrants in the South-West.
Speaking at the signing of the project agreement in Ibadan, the Oyo State Commissioner for Agriculture, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, explained that the project would provide access to agricultural training, farmland, cooperative development, market opportunities and livelihood support.
He stressed that the project would address rural youth unemployment, support the sustainable reintegration of returnee migrants, curb irregular migration and promote rural economic development through climate-smart and sustainable agriculture.
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Olaleye disclosed that the state government had secured 1,766 hectares of unencumbered farmland in Ilero, Kajola Local Government Area, and another 50 hectares at the Rural Community Development Centre in Aawe, Afijio Local Government Area, for the project.
He noted that the government would facilitate access to land, security, agricultural training, mechanisation, market linkages and other support needed to help beneficiaries establish sustainable livelihoods.
According to him, the project would also promote sustainable land management and contribute to the state’s food security efforts.
The commissioner explained that the project built on existing initiatives of the Gov. Seyi Makinde administration aimed at making agriculture attractive to young people as a business and career rather than merely subsistence farming.
He listed youth training, agribusiness development, climate-smart agriculture, mechanisation, digital soil testing, extension services and market-oriented interventions among the initiatives.
Olaleye disclosed that YERP was expected to generate evidence that could inform future policies on youth employment and migration management.
“YERP is therefore coming into an environment where a foundation for youth participation in agriculture already exists. What the partnership with ICMPD brings is an additional opportunity to extend these efforts to more rural young people and returnee migrants,” Olaleye explained.
He urged young people to explore opportunities across the agricultural value chain, including production, processing, logistics, mechanisation, digital agriculture and marketing.
The ICMPD Portfolio Manager for the Pan-Africa Region, Marcello Giordani, described Nigeria as ICMPD’s biggest and most important partner in Africa.
Giordani explained that while ICMPD had several projects in Nigeria, YERP stood out because of its potential to create sustainable opportunities for young people through agriculture.
“With new technology and the right conditions to enable them to build their future and earn a living through agriculture, I believe this project could be of great help,” Giordani stated.
He commended the Oyo State Government for its commitment to the partnership, noting that the signing demonstrated the state’s ownership of the project.
Officials of the Oyo State Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, including Permanent Secretary Abosede Owoeye, and representatives of ICMPD attended the signing ceremony.
