Nigeria’s Federal Government has launched the Youth Agribusiness Land Trust Fund (YALTF), a landmark initiative designed to improve access to agricultural land for young people and accelerate youth participation across the country’s agribusiness sector.

The programme, unveiled in Abuja, seeks to address one of the most persistent challenges confronting young agricultural entrepreneurs—limited access to land. Beyond land allocation, the initiative will provide beneficiaries with training, mentorship, access to technology, business development support, financing opportunities and market linkages aimed at building sustainable agribusiness enterprises.

Speaking at the launch, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, described the fund as a strategic intervention that aligns with Nigeria’s broader economic diversification and food security objectives.

According to Bagudu, Nigeria possesses vast agricultural resources and significant growth potential, but longstanding challenges related to land ownership structures, access constraints and weak coordination mechanisms have prevented the sector from reaching its full productive capacity.

He emphasized that agriculture should increasingly be viewed as a modern, commercially driven industry capable of creating jobs, attracting investment and driving economic transformation rather than merely serving as a subsistence activity.

Drawing comparisons with leading agricultural economies such as the Netherlands, the minister noted that success in agriculture depends not only on land availability but also on efficient organisation, innovation, technology adoption, skills development and improved productivity.

Bagudu encouraged young Nigerians to take advantage of emerging opportunities across the agricultural value chain, including crop production, livestock farming, fisheries, agritech solutions, food processing and agricultural services.

He expressed confidence that the Youth Agribusiness Land Trust Fund would contribute significantly to improving food security, creating employment opportunities and supporting national economic growth.

Also speaking at the event, the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, said the initiative demonstrates the government’s commitment to transforming youth empowerment policies into practical programmes capable of delivering measurable economic outcomes.

Olawande noted that many young Nigerians possess the talent, creativity and entrepreneurial drive needed to succeed, but often lack access to critical resources, opportunities and institutional support systems.

He explained that YALTF was specifically designed to remove these barriers and supports the objectives of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises youth inclusion in economic development and nation-building efforts.

The minister highlighted agriculture as one of Nigeria’s most underutilised sectors for employment generation and poverty reduction, stressing that modern agribusiness extends far beyond farming activities to include technology development, processing, packaging, logistics, marketing, exports and value-added enterprises.

According to Olawande, the concept behind the initiative emerged following visits to youth development centres nationwide, where large tracts of underutilised land were identified as potential hubs for youth-led agricultural ventures.

He described the fund as a long-term national programme whose success will depend on strong collaboration among government institutions, development partners, financial organisations and private-sector stakeholders.

The minister further stressed that providing land alone will not be sufficient to unlock the sector’s potential, noting that young agripreneurs also require access to finance, technical expertise, modern technologies and reliable market channels.

He called on stakeholders across the agricultural ecosystem to actively support the initiative, describing the launch as a significant step toward creating inclusive economic opportunities and empowering a new generation of agribusiness leaders.

The Youth Agribusiness Land Trust Fund represents one of Nigeria’s latest efforts to position agriculture as a key driver of youth employment, food security and sustainable economic development while addressing structural barriers that have historically limited participation by young entrepreneurs in the sector.