President
Muhammadu Buhari says educated and uneducated youths in the country should go
to the farm in order earn respect for themselves.
The
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu,
in a statement Tuesday, quoted Buhari as saying this at Blair House, Washington
DC, after his White House engagements with President Donald Trump, while
meeting with Chief Executive Officers of six US agricultural companies and
their Nigerian counterparts including Aliko Dangote and John Coumantaros.
Buhari promised
the support of his administration in the promotion of skill development,
innovation and entrepreneurship among the young population.
The
president stated: “We realized, rather belatedly that we ought to have been
investing in agriculture. We are now aiming at food security because of our
large population.
"Our
youths, the ones who have gone to school and even those that have not, should
go to the farm, to earn respect for themselves. Agriculture is providing jobs
for millions of our citizens and we are doing well towards the attainment of
food security and jobs. The media may not appreciate the work we are doing but
we will shock them by the success we are recording.”
The
president lamented the challenges of the country’s youth bulge, with “sixty per
cent of the population below 30 years.”
He
said the country must help the young people to plan their future and urged them
to explore opportunities easily accessible in agriculture because, as he said,
“agriculture is the future.”
According
to the president, planning in Nigeria must take into consideration the factors
of climate and a bulging youth population.
President
Buhari welcomed the several investment proposals being put in place by the
Americans and their Nigerian counterparts.
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