A total of 65 youth-led businesses across the Niger Delta region have been awarded grants totalling N44.3 million, by the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), a non-profit organization.

The awards presented to the beneficiaries, during the PIND’s Youth Employment Pathways (YEP) Business Challenge Awards Fund Ceremony held in Asaba, formed part of activities marking this year’s International Youth Day (IYD) in the region.

Speaking at the event, Sam Daibo, the executive director of PIND who disclosed that this year”s programme was implemented in partnership with the Nigeria Philanthropy Office (NPO), explained that the catalytic grants to the 65 youth-led businesses, reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to unlocking youth potential as a driver of peace and sustainable economic development in the Niger Delta.

The event with the theme: “Advancing Peace and Development in the Niger Delta Through Technology, Partnerships, and Job Creation”, brought together over 100 participants, including youth leaders, government officials, private sector actors, development partners, and civil society organizations.

Daibo said that the Business Challenge Fund Awards Ceremony, a flagship initiative of PIND’s YEP program provides grant funding to help young entrepreneurs across the region launch or scale their ventures.

According to him, the 65 recipients were made up of 33 males and 32 females, including three persons with disabilities. They hail from Delta, Ondo, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom States, and operate across sectors such as agriculture, ICT, fashion, catering, solar installation, construction, and photography, explained Daibo.

Of the 65 grants awarded, 22 went to service-oriented businesses (fashion, solar installation, photography), 20 to agriculture-based ventures, 18 to construction-related businesses, and 5 to ICT start-ups, he disclosed.

He noted that this year’s International Youth Day was more than a celebration, describing it as a powerful statement about the creativity, resilience, and leadership of young people in the Niger Delta.

“Through YEP, we are not just supporting individual entrepreneurs, we are building local ecosystems of peace and productivity, one youth-led enterprise at a time.”

YEP is PIND’s workforce readiness and enterprise development initiative designed to equip vulnerable and marginalized young people with technical, entrepreneurial, and soft skills needed to access sustainable livelihoods. The program’s model is evidence-based, competency-driven, and powered by partnerships with TVET institutions, private sector employers, and government agencies.

Patrick Ekpe, YEP manager while presenting the symbolic cheque to the beneficiaries, said that over 2,000 youths applied for the grants but the 65 were chosen having emerged successfully in the competition.

He recalled that since year 2020, over 350 youths have been empowered under the programme across the region and are today telling their success stories. He urged the 2025 beneficiaries to make judicious use of the funds.

On their part, the recipients present at occasion, on behalf of the rest, expressed gratitude for the gesture done them and pledged to use the funds for the purpose it was meant for.