The Provost of Federal Cooperative College Kaduna, Dr. Ibrahim Muhammed Awwal, has said that the revised agriculture curriculum is designed to produce graduates who can build and manage cooperative-led agricultural enterprises. He stated this yesterday during an interview with TVET NEWS MONITOR on the sidelines of the Agriculture Curriculum Review Workshop organised by the National Board For Technical Education in Kaduna.

He said the shift to competency-based training moves the focus from classroom theory to skills that enable graduates to operate viable cooperative businesses from day one.

He said graduates will be trained to conduct feasibility studies for cooperative ventures and prepare bankable business plans that meet the requirements of financial institutions and development partners.

He said the curriculum also prepares them to guide smallholder farmers through the process of registering societies under the Nigerian Cooperative Societies Act and setting up proper governance structures.

He said students will learn to design member-driven business models that link producers directly to markets, reduce post-harvest losses, and improve bargaining power for inputs and sales.

He said the approach aligns with the federal government’s food security objectives and the Renewed Hope Agenda by creating a pipeline of cooperative managers who can scale rural enterprises.

He said practical exposure during the programme will focus on cooperative enterprise incubation, collective marketing, and financial management at the grassroots level.

He said the training will emphasize youth and gender inclusion in cooperative membership and leadership to broaden participation in the agricultural value chain.

He said the expected outcome is a new cadre of graduates capable of supporting cooperative societies to access credit, technology, and markets more effectively.

He said the College views this direction as key to strengthening rural economies and making agriculture a more attractive and profitable option for young Nigerians.