The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to youth empowerment and economic growth through the Youth Economic Intervention and De-Radicalization Programme (YEIDEP), an initiative designed to create opportunities and reduce unemployment among Nigerian youths.
From information shared with Nigeriastartupact.ng on Sunday, Mrs. Warrens Bekearedebo, Director of Finance and Accounts at the Federal Ministry of Youth Development and Chairperson of YEIDEP, represented the Minister for Youth Development, Comrade Ayodele Olawande Wisdom. She said the initiative is a partnership between the Federal Government and Youth Off the Street Initiative (YOTSI), with Comrade Kennedy E.A. serving as the convener.
According to her, “One of the notable programmes of the Youth Economic Intervention and Development Programme is to empower youth. Now, we have so many youth initiatives in the ministry, but one of them that stands out is the YEIDEP programme, and the reason is because it is targeted at boosting agriculture to increase social security, eradicate extremism, reduce crime, and create entrepreneurship.”
She added that the YEIDEP programme aligns with two key points of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. “In the Renewed Hope Agenda, we have food security through the boosting of agriculture, and we also have eradication or reduction of poverty. With this programme in place, we are going to be able to achieve those priorities of Mr. President,” she explained.
Mrs. Bekearedebo noted that YEIDEP is currently holding stakeholder meetings across the federation, with international donors showing strong support. “Our donors are from outside the country, and with this programme, for you to be properly empowered, the vision of Mr. President, carried out by the Ministry of Youth Development, will also be achieved,” she said.
Highlighting the progress of the initiative, she explained that YEIDEP is being implemented in tranches. “Our first tranche is targeting 20 million youth. Right now, we have close to 8 million youth on board, and we believe that before June 2026, we would have gotten over 20 million youth,” she stated.
Encouraging young Nigerians to participate, Mrs. Bekearedebo said the programme has the potential to produce thousands of successful entrepreneurs. “This opportunity can give birth to more than 100,000 entrepreneurs that will become conglomerates in the near future. Businesses start very small, but with a lot of inputs and visionaries like our financial members, they’re going to be partnering with these businesses, these entrepreneurs, to train them in other areas,” she said.
She further mentioned that YEIDEP is not limited to agriculture alone. “Apart from agriculture, we have the creative industry — like the Legends of Nollywood — partnering with us too. So we’re developing talents, we’re boosting innovation, and we’re also driving diversification,” she said.
Mrs. Bekearedebo concluded by urging Nigerian youths to embrace the opportunity, describing it as “time-saving, for today and for the future.”