There are ongoing rumours that the Youth Empowerment and Innovation Development Programme (YEIDEP) shortlist is out. However, the shortlisted candidates list was already concluded, and payment is what will follow next. The current claims about a new shortlist do not tally with the present structure of the programme.
Some social media users have been posting messages such as “YEIDEP: Shortlisting of 1st 8,000 beneficiaries is ongoing.” This claim is false. The shortlist is not ongoing as claimed. YEIDEP had already selected 8,000 beneficiaries for the first tranche of disbursement. Therefore, the only thing that will happen next is the disbursement of funds.
Fidelity Bank confirmed this in a statement saying, “At this stage, we are currently awaiting the official announcement and next steps from the Federal Government regarding the disbursement and activation of the associated programs. Once the directive is issued, all account holders will promptly be communicated with regarding any necessary actions or updates.”
This means that once the Federal Government gives the directive, all beneficiaries in the first tranche will be paid between ₦50,000 and ₦500,000 as initially proposed.
Previously, Nigeriastartupact.ng reported that engagement with beneficiaries is what is currently ongoing. The disbursement for the 8,000 Batch A beneficiaries is expected to begin between October 20 and 30, 2025. However, this timeline remains unconfirmed, as the programme management has not officially announced it.
Meanwhile, there are also claims that Opay and Moniepoint will start creating accounts for YEIDEP beneficiaries. This is not true. The only official YEIDEP partner banks are Keystone Bank, Lotus Bank, Fidelity Bank, Access Bank, Zenith Bank, Union Bank, UBA, FirstBank, Wema Bank, Jaiz Bank, and The Alternative Bank.
Those selected for YEIDEP should simply expect credit alerts once disbursement begins.