By Fatima Muraina

The Federal Government has been urged to avoid engaging faceless farmers in the newly launched “Green Money Project,” an initiative aimed at empowering youths in agriculture.

The charge was given by experts who spoke with The Hope in separate interviews.

They include; a don, Prof. Ahmed Balogun of the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), and the Ondo State chairman of the National Council of Youths, Mr. Ogunmola Matthew Adewole.

They expressed opinion that practising farmers are often sidelined in government intervention programmes.

Prof. Balogun called on the government to prioritise governance over politics in implementing such initiatives to ensure they achieve their intended goal of food sufficiency.

“Many people are unaware of initiatives like the farmers’ registration currently being conducted in Ondo State.

“Green empowerment programmes should be linked to such registrations to identify genuine beneficiaries for proper monitoring and follow-up, rather than distributing benefits randomly to people like us who already possess knowledge.

“These interventions should not be allocated to faceless groups, as Mr. Ogunmola described, but rather to those who can genuinely support farmers,” he stated.

Mr. Ogunmola, while welcoming the Green Money Project, stressed that it should be inclusive and not restricted to members of a particular political party.

He noted that, if properly implemented, the programme could play a significant role in addressing food insecurity.

“I am the State chairman of the Youth Council, and I have yet to receive any information about the Green Money Project,” he said.

He urged the Federal Government to ensure the programme is open to all youths to prevent premature collapse.

 He further recommended that all youths’ platforms, especially the Ministry of Youths, relevant statutory bodies responsible, should be actively engaged to mobilise interested youths, particularly those involved in agriculture.

It will be recalled that the Federal Government recently inaugurated the “Green Money Project” to empower Nigerian youths in the agricultural sector.