By Stephen Adeleye
Financial expert and community leader, Ambassador Dr. Samuel Babatunde-Esanuaje, has advised Nigerian youths to embrace farming as a way to achieve financial independence and improve their quality of life. Speaking with journalists at the 2024 Orokere Day celebration in Orokere-Amuro, Mopamuro Local Government Area, Kogi State, Babatunde encouraged youths to avoid social vices and look to agriculture as a sustainable response to the country’s economic challenges.
As the National Financial Consultant for the Association of 774 Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) and Gbobagunwa of Amuro Land, Babatunde highlighted the role of agriculture in job creation and poverty alleviation. “We’re facing a food crisis, and meaningful involvement in farming can be a solution,” he stated. “I personally cultivate 12 hectares of rice, which shows farming is both viable and profitable.”
Babatunde pointed out that agriculture offers young people an opportunity to become self-sufficient while contributing to national food security. “With the current cost of rice at around N130,000 per 50kg for imported brands and N100,000 for local varieties, farming offers significant earning potential,” he said. “Youth engagement in agriculture can bring prosperity, while also promoting community involvement, peace, and responsibility.”
In addition, Babatunde called on the government to address key security issues, including the protection of farmlands and tackling the threats of banditry and kidnappings that undermine agricultural productivity. “Ensuring safety will allow more people to pursue farming and, in turn, strengthen food security,” he added.
Retired Commodore Folusho Daniel, a former representative of Mopamuro in the Kogi Assembly, echoed Babatunde’s call for youth empowerment. “We need to focus on employment and engagement for our youth,” he said. “This is essential not only for their future but also for reducing insecurity across the country.”
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