AGRIPRENEURSHIP LITERACY AS A CATALYST FOR FOOD SECURITY AND SUSTAINABILITY IN NIGERIA: A FOCUS ON GOVERNMENT ENTERPRISE EMPOWERMENT PROGRAMME (GEEP)
Keywords:
Agripreneurship, GEEP, food security, food sustainability, financial inclusion and economic growth.Abstract
Despite growing acknowledgment among management scholars globally and successive governments in developing countries that agricultural entrepreneurship engenders food security and economic growth, a significant gap remains in complementing government agricultural initiatives with meaningful youth engagement in agribusiness. This paper examines the implications of implementing agripreneurship literacy among undergraduates/graduates in Nigerian tertiary institutions to achieve food sustainability, using the Government Enterprise Empowerment Programme (GEEP) as a platform. A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. A sample of 100 NYSC members (n = 100) was randomly selected from a population of 138 (N = 138) across Umunneochi and Isuikwuato Local Government Areas (LGAs), Abia State. A structured questionnaire served as the data collection instrument; its validity was established through expert review, and reliability was confirmed using Cronbach's Alpha. Four research questions and four corresponding hypotheses guided the study, with Pearson's Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient used to test the hypotheses. Findings reveal that exposure to agripreneurship education as a compulsory general studies course in Nigerian tertiary institutions is significantly related to self-reliance among undergraduates/NYSC members. It is concluded that structured agripreneurship literacy, backed by financial incentives, is a viable pathway to stimulating youth interest in agribusiness. The study recommends expanding the GEEP to include NYSC members, equipping them with agripreneurship skills, National Skill Qualification (NSQ) certificates and financial incentives upon course completion, as a strategy toward achieving food security. Additionally, the study proposes an agripreneurship literacy implementation framework to guide the government in the implementation of the scheme across Nigerian tertiary institutions.
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