Education

Employment: Nigerian youths face bleak future outside agriculture —Landmark Varsity VC

The Vice Chancellor, Landmark University, Omu Aran, Professor Aize Obayan, has raised the alarm that there will be no jobs outside agriculture to meet employment needs of young people in the country by 2035.

Speaking with journalists on the occasion of the 62nd birthday of the Chancellor of the university, Bishop David Oyedepo, in Omu-Aran at the weekend, the vice chancellor said that the dire economic situation in the country had necessitated urgent intervention from agricultural sector in a bid to transit from import-based to the desirable export-driven economy.

“According to a World Bank projection, about 100 million young people will be joining the labour queue by 2035. This is an awful picture of a nation with lesser job opportunities; this implies that there will be no jobs outside agriculture to meet the employment needs of these people.

“Experts agree that the next gold pool of jobs will be in agriculture and services sector of the economy,” she said.

Professor Obayan, who noted that the global economic downturn occasioned by the fall in crude oil price is taking its toll on Nigeria, added that attaining success in the agricultural sector would reduce food importation that fuels domestic inflation and depletes foreign reserves.

“As an importing nation that needs dollar reserves to support her import needs, Nigeria’s reserves keep depleting as world oil price declines. To stop bleeding the external reserves, the Central Bank of Nigeria has urged Nigerians to begin to process raw materials so as to get more value and earn more foreign exchange.

“Wisdom, therefore, demands that agricultural products should be used as input for our own home-made products so that we can export finished products,” she said.

Professor Obayan also said that the agric-based institution had not relented in championing crusade of awareness that agriculture is not just about farming but about entire value chain, which she added had been gaining grounds.

“It is capable of turning people, particularly the youths, into agricultural entrepreneurs,” she said.

Professor Obayan also said that the Landmark University had collaborated with other agricultural farms like Shonga Farms, Kwara State; Songhai Farms, Benin Republic, and Elpassso Farms in Pretoria, South-Africa with intention to boost food production and reduce poverty in the country.

She described the Chancellor of the university, Dr. David Oyedepo, as a visionary leader of a global repute whose obedience to the divine call and passion for the vision had brought remarkable transformation to the educational landscape and agricultural revolution in Africa.

“We are here today, celebrating a man with a selfless service to God and humanity; an illustrious son of Africa who through capacity initiatives and efforts has provided hope to many lives globally.

“We are appreciating God’s grace upon the life of His servant whose agenda to drive change and transformation in Africa and the world at large is unmistaken.

“We are celebrating a man of vision who demonstrated a prompt obedience to divine instruction and by this provides a better platform for the landscape of agriculture and education.”

David Olagunju

Recent Posts

Asthmatics can live without having asthma —Experts

Though asthma is a long-term disease, asthmatics can live a life without having asthma if…

59 minutes ago

Short sleep can shorten your health —Don

A medical expert, Professor Gregory Erhabor, says that sleep deprivation is a cause of short-…

1 hour ago

Nigeria needs robust cancer control plan that includes HPV-associated types —Expert

Nigeria needs to have a robust cancer control plan that will include HPV-associated cancer considering…

2 hours ago

Miva Open varsity decries Nigeria’s admission crisis

THE first private tech-driven Open University in Nigeria, Miwa Open University, has reaffirmed its commitment…

2 hours ago

FG moves to curb rising cases of bullying in schools, unveils youth training programme

The Federal Government has officially launched the 2025 National Policy on Anti-bullying in Schools and…

3 hours ago

Workers lacked conducive toilets, bathroom onboard MT Bawarza —MWUN

The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has shed more light on why it warned…

3 hours ago

Welcome

Install

This website uses cookies.