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Wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu on Thursday disclosed that funding for her pet-project, Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), all come from private donors and corporate partners.
Mrs Tinubu made this known at the State House, Abuja, while speaking to newsmen after meeting with wives of state governors and other state representatives who are state and regional coordinators of the RHI.
According to her, the clarification became necessary due to enquiries in some quarters.
Defending the RHI’s source of funding, the First Lady said: “I know people are always saying, where do I get the billions from, I’m going to address that. We are a Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO). People give us money”.
According to her, among her donors, besides those who would prefer to be anonymous, is the BUA Group.
“Like the food bank we are doing, we have two companies, BUA is one of them, the other one wants to stay anonymous.
“They give us a truckload of food, and Mrs (Kashim) Shettima is handling that. We go from state to state. We also have covered about seven states, and BUA is joining in so as to cover the 36 states, if it is one truck per state. So, within under two years, we should be able to finish. So I’m really excited that BUA too keyed into that”, she said.
She also disclosed that the RHI will unveil the winner of the ‘Every Home a Garden’ competition by December, adding that the competition has already produced three finalists.
The winner of the competition, which aims to encourage Nigerians, especially women, to adopt the practice of cottage farming, she said, will go home with the grand prize of N20 million.
Speaking further on the competition, she said: “We have the unveiling of the every home a garden competition. So very soon, December, we are ready to announce the winner, we’ve shortlisted to three”.
Meanwhile, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security said it has earmarked about N2.516 billion to mainstream four of the agriculture-related programmes of the First Lady’s RHI.
In a move to strengthen food security and agricultural development in the country, the said it has allocated approximately N68 million to each state to support four key agriculture-focused initiatives under the First Lady’s RHI.
Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Aliyu Abdullahi, who disclosed this after a meeting said the funding will be divided across the four specific projects within the RHI’s agricultural support pillar.
He listed them as: Training and empowerment of women in agriculture, support for young farmers, the “Every Home a Garden” programme, and the revitalisation of the Young Farmers Club.
Each project aims to foster sustainable agricultural practices and enhance food security across the nation.
According to the Minister: “We are partnering with the office of the First Lady under her pet project, the RHI, to deliver meaningful agricultural support across all states through their first ladies.
“This collaboration allows us to leverage her platform to reach communities and boost agricultural participation at a grassroots level”.
Abdullahi outlined the projects, starting with the training and empowerment of women in agriculture, which will focus on enhancing women’s skills in farming and food processing to improve food security and nutritional standards.
The programme, he said, will also assist young farmers, both male and female, to establish themselves in the agricultural sector.
One innovative component is the Every Home a Garden initiative, which encourages families to cultivate small gardens, which the Minister believes will help households contribute to the national food basket, reduce pressure on market supplies, and increase food access within homes.
The Young Farmers Club, a familiar Programme from earlier decades, is also being reinvigorated under the initiative.
“This club will be supported to encourage younger generations to see agriculture as a viable career path, not just as a livelihood but as a sustainable contribution to national food security,” Abdullahi explained.
The minister said the funds will be disbursed to state coordinators, with a clear schedule outlining the budget for each project.
State-level agriculture officers from the Federal Ministry will collaborate closely with the first ladies’ offices to oversee project implementation and ensure efficient use of resources.
Addressing the timeframe for deployment, Abdullahi indicated that the Ministry was nearing readiness, saying it was 95 per cent prepared.
“After this briefing, coordinators will work with designated desk officers in each state. Once account details from the first ladies’ offices are received, we’ll begin disbursing funds,” he added.
Abdullahi emphasised that the initiative was not a one-off but part of a broader commitment to mainstream sustainable agricultural practices nationwide.
Deji Elumoye
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