26/05/2026
PressRelease: SAPZ/IFAD-Programme has conducted a 4 day Training of 600 Kano Youths on Job Creation, Entrepreneurship
The Special Agro-Processing Zones (SAPZ) Programme, under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, in collaboration with the Bayero University Center for Entrepreneurship Training and Research, has organized a four-day capacity building training aimed at empowering youths on job creation and entrepreneurship in Kano State.
The training, which targeted 600 youths drawn from 600 farmer organizations across eight local government areas, supported under IFAD component 2 of the programme, focused on equipping participants with entrepreneurial skills, digital marketing knowledge, customer management strategies, and business sustainability techniques.
Speaking during the training, Dr. Mujiba Kabir Yahaya, the State Rural Institutions Development Officer (RIDO) of thr Programme, said the initiative was part of efforts to reduce unemployment among youths and promote self-reliance through agriculture and agribusiness.
According to her, the beneficiaries were selected from Gezawa, Bebeji, Bichi, Dambatta, Bagwai, Kura and Garun Mallam local government areas.
She explained that SAPZ plans to support participating Farmer Organisations (FOs) with agricultural equipment including planters, threshers, power tillers, chemical sprayers, reapers and other farming tools after the training.
“We are trying as much as possible to reduce the number of unemployed youths in our communities. That is why SAPZ came in to play a role in reducing unemployment among youths in Kano State,” she said.
On his part the National Rural Institutions and Development Officer, Mr Abel Ameh, who was in kano to give technical guidance on the innovative, disclosed that SAPZ aims to train 5,000 youths across two quarters in the year, with 2,500 participants targeted in the current phase.
He added that sustainability measures had been incorporated into the programme through mentorship and linkage opportunities to financial institutions and non-governmental organizations.
“We have modules covering how participants can access grants from banks and NGOs to scale up their businesses. We will also continue mentoring and monitoring them alongside their local governments,” she stated.
He then expressed satisfaction with the level of participation and feedback received from the trainees, noting that post-training evaluations showed participants were pleased with the knowledge gained.
Also speaking, Professor Amina Mustapha, an agricultural economist specializing in agricultural marketing and value chain analysis, said her presentation focused on marketing, digital skills and customer management.
She stressed the importance of digital tools in modern agribusiness, noting that producers and processors must adopt innovative strategies to advertise and market their products effectively.
“With the high unemployment rate in Nigeria, youths must begin to think outside the box and create opportunities for themselves because agriculture offers enormous potential,” she said.
Professor Mustapha noted that many participants, especially women and youths, were already engaged in various business activities and digital marketing initiatives, while others were only beginning to understand the importance of promoting their products online.
She called for continuous follow-up training and retraining to ensure participants fully understood and implemented the knowledge acquired during the programme.
On his part, Muazu Hassan Muazu, Deputy Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship Research and Training at Bayero University Kano, described the programme as a strategic collaboration aimed at building entrepreneurial mindsets among youths.
He said participants were trained on business plan development, business sustainability and product marketing.
“We are empowering youths with entrepreneurial skills and teaching them how to sustain businesses and market their products effectively,” he said.
Muazu commended SAPZ for ensuring strong female participation in the programme, describing women empowerment as critical to societal development.
“When you educate a woman, you educate a society. Empowering youths helps reduce poverty, social vices and thuggery because people become meaningfully engaged,” he added.
He urged participants to apply the knowledge gained and extend it to others within their communities who were unable to participate in the training.
Some beneficiaries of the training also shared how the programme improved their knowledge in modern farming, agribusiness and digital marketing.
Khalifa Rabiu Ibrahim from Gezawa Local Government Area, representing Skeli Farmers Association, said the training exposed him to modern farming techniques and improved agribusiness practices.
He noted that prior to the training, he had limited knowledge of modern agricultural practices but expressed confidence that he would transfer the knowledge gained to members of his association.
Khalifa added that he had earlier benefited from SAPZ support through farmland demonstration and seed experimentation supervised by the programme to ensure proper germination and productivity.
He identified inadequate knowledge of modern farming methods as one of the challenges he previously faced and commended SAPZ for the intervention, urging the organisers to sustain and expand the initiative.
Rabi Mustapha Sadiq
SAPZ Programme KSPIU
Knowledge Management and Communication Officer
