BY: UMAR IDRIS SHU’AIBU, KANO
The Federal College of Agricultural Produce Technology (FCAPT), has trained not fewer than 1,200 youths on agricultural e-commerce, as part of its contribution to tackling the menace of unemployment in the country.
The training session was held in the college premises.
The Provost of the College Dr. Muhammad Yusha’u Gwaram said the session is a huge lucrative business and career opportunity within the commodities value chain.
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Gwaram said the college has been utilizing available means to contribute to the country’s job creation through agricultural value chains.
The Provost represented by the Head of Crop Production and Pest Management Technology of FCAPT, Malam Aliyu Uba Ahmad said the training is a collaborative idea between the college and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), I-Youth Unit.
Aliyu Uba harped on the need for students and farmers to embrace electronic commerce (e-commerce), saying it will help them maximize the value of their agribusiness.
According to him, e-commerce in agriculture has emerged as an alternative model to formalize informal value chains, as it enables purchases and sales of produce online.
“E-commerce allows farmers to bypass intermediaries and sell directly to customer groups otherwise out of reach.
If you have an interest in agriculture or open to learn about business ideas in agriculture, you don’t need to own a farm of any kind be it animal husbandry or crop production before making money from Agricultural business.
In fact, people who make the most profit from Agribusiness are not necessarily farm owners.
Agribusiness has taken adramatic turn to a better direction and Millionaires are currently being made every year through it in Nigeria, and there is certainly no end to the prospects of creating more wealth through Agribusiness in the coming years.
So, our focus now is to train our students to know the opportunities available especially when leveraging the power of the internet, through their phones, computers so that they can be able to market their product online”, Aliyu Uba Ahmad stated.
Speaking earlier, an e-learning consultant with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), said considering the unemployment rate in the country, the two organizations try to reduce the number of youths with unemployment through leveraging social media marketing.
“We want them to pick up because if you look at the opportunities that up-takers are making through the agribusiness, it is thousands of that of the farmers.
On another way round, social media and other digital platforms will help them to actualize the benefits that were taught”.
After the training, three students of FCAPT got Coursera online course scholarships, sponsored by the MasterCard Foundation.
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In the same vein, the Federal College of Agricultural Produce Technology also participated in Nigeria International Agriculture Expo ATCC Abuja 2024.
This year’s event brings together key players in the agricultural industry from around the world, and serves as a platform for showcasing the latest innovations, technologies, and modern practices in agriculture.
The college showcases different innovative ideas in the agricultural value chain and post-harvest technology.
Recall that in 2024, FCAPT trains youths on the utilization of orange-fleshed sweet potato, empowered women on fruit juice production and post-harvest storage techniques, and trained farmers on financial cycles totaling to 3,000 beneficiaries in northern Nigeria, across the value chains.