First Lady Oluremi Tinubu has unveiled an initiative to train 5,000 women and youths in agricultural mechanisation, digital agriculture, equipment operation, maintenance and agribusiness.

Mrs Tinubu, represented by the wife of the Vice President, Nana Shettima, unveiled the Agri-360 Mechanisation Training Initiative at a National Colloquium on the Role of Women and Youth in Advancing Agricultural Mechanisation on Wednesday in Abuja.

The programme, organised by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security in collaboration with Mela-Pat Chiyoma Ltd, is a three-year initiative designed to equip beneficiaries with practical mechanisation and agribusiness skills.

According to her, agricultural mechanisation will boost productivity, reduce the physical burden of farming and make agriculture more attractive to young Nigerians seeking sustainable careers.

“Mechanisation enhances productivity, reduces the physical burden of farming and makes agriculture more attractive to young people,” she said.

She said empowering women with relevant skills and resources would enable them to establish sustainable businesses, strengthen household incomes and contribute significantly to food security and improved livelihoods.

“When women have the skills and resources to earn and grow their businesses, the benefits extend to their families and communities,” the first lady stated.

Earlier, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, mechanisation was critical to reducing drudgery, increasing productivity and making agriculture more attractive to young Nigerians.

“A farmer using a hoe should not be expected to compete with a farmer using modern machinery,” Mr Kyari said, stressing the need for wider access to appropriate agricultural technology.

He said mechanisation could enable farmers to accomplish in hours what might otherwise take days, while creating employment for operators, technicians, equipment managers and other service providers.

Mr Kyari said Nigeria needed to develop a mechanisation-as-a-service economy linking farmers with machinery, skills, finance, maintenance, processing and markets to drive productivity and value addition.

Also, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, said the initiative was timely, noting that agricultural transformation was no longer an option but a necessity for Nigeria.

Mr Kalu, represented by Chairman of the House Committee on Agricultural Production and Services, Bello Ka’oje, said the National Assembly supported policies promoting food security, agricultural development and women and youth empowerment.

He urged beneficiaries to embrace the opportunity with commitment and determination, saying the future of Nigerian agriculture belonged to those combining knowledge, technology and enterprise.

The Managing Director, Mela-Chiyoma Pat Ltd, Patrick Stan-Dioka, said mechanisation training should extend beyond tractor operation to include coupling, maintenance and other technical skills required to sustain agricultural equipment.

“The mother of mechanisation is knowing how to couple tractors and how to maintain tractors,” she said.

She stressed that proper maintenance could keep tractors productive for decades.

She called for local tractor assembly and comprehensive support from equipment suppliers, including technical training and maintenance, commending the Lagos State Government for supporting local assembly efforts.

Ms Stan-Dioka also disclosed that a tractor grant programme would be introduced in Nigeria to expand access to agricultural machinery and enable beneficiaries to translate their skills into productive ventures.

(NAN)