Questions and answers
For nominees, and for nominating authorities
Two sets of questions. The first is for anyone applying for a place; the second is for the Local Government Areas, traditional institutions, cooperatives and MDAs that countersign nominations.
For nominees
Applying for a place
Thirteen questions the programme office is asked most often, in the order they usually come up.
- Eligibility
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Who can apply?
Any resident of Nasarawa State, from any of the thirteen Local Government Areas, who meets the priority criteria of one of the three streams. Agriculture gives priority to practising smallholder farmers, members of registered cooperatives and young people with demonstrable access to farmland. Digital gives priority to young people with basic literacy and a demonstrated intent to work in or through digital channels; prior computer experience is not required. Business Development gives priority to existing micro-enterprise operators, market traders and artisans with a trading activity, and to cooperative members with a demonstrated business idea.
- Cost
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Does it cost anything?
No. There is no fee at any stage. Training, materials and certification are provided at no cost to the participant. Nobody is authorised to ask you for money in connection with this programme — for a place, for a form, or for a faster decision. If you are asked, report it to the programme office.
- Enrolment
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When does enrolment open?
Enrolment onto the online class on this platform opens on 4 September 2026, ten days before the physical training begins. Every nominee is verified and assigned a place before the guided week starts, so that nobody arrives at the centre without having done the online units.
- Dates and place
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When does the training run, and where?
The programme runs over ten days. The guided week online runs 7–13 September 2026 on this platform, from wherever you live. The physical training is 14–15 September 2026 at a single centre in Lafia, and the closing day — pitching, awards, certificates and graduation — is 16 September 2026.
The venue is to be announced. The address is published on this site, and sent to every enrolled participant, as soon as the Supervising Office confirms it.
- Applying
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How do I apply?
Complete the nomination form on this site yourself, choosing one stream. You will be asked for your own details and for the details of your nominating authority. The authority then receives an email containing a single-use link and countersigns the nomination electronically. You keep your application reference; it is how you check progress.
- One stream only
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Can I apply for two streams?
No. A participant may hold a place in one stream only, so that the 1,500 participants are 1,500 distinct individuals. National Identification Number verification is used to enforce this. Choose the stream that matches the work you actually intend to do.
- Your NIN
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Why do you ask for my NIN, and is it safe?
The National Identification Number is used to confirm that you are who you say you are and that you hold a place in one stream only. It is encrypted when stored, never shown in full on any screen, never written into any web address, and never included in any export. Only the last few digits are ever displayed. Verification is carried out by the programme office after you submit; it does not block your application from being submitted, and you are not required to wait for it.
- Disability
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I have a disability. What should I put on the form?
The form asks about disability status and about what accommodation you need. Answering it is how the commitment that not less than 50 per cent of participants are women, youth and persons living with disabilities is actually delivered rather than counted afterwards. Venue selection, seating and practical arrangements accommodate participants with mobility impairments. That information is treated as sensitive: access to it is restricted and it is excluded from routine reporting.
- Equipment
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Do I need my own computer for the digital stream?
There is a workstation for each participant for the two days at the centre, so no computer of your own is needed there. The guided week online is delivered on this platform and is built to work on an ordinary Android phone on mobile data. Twenty-four graduates who pass the final assessment receive a personal workstation, awarded on assessed merit rather than on attendance.
- Enablement
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Will I be given money or equipment at the end?
Not automatically, and not as cash. The scheme carries four enablement instruments, each awarded on assessment: shared solar irrigation kits to ten producer clusters, workstations to twenty-four digital graduates, formalisation support for business graduates whose plan requires registration, and seed grants to ventures that win the pitch competition on the closing day.
- Certificate
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What do I receive when I finish?
A certificate issued against demonstrated competence rather than attendance, carrying a serial number and a verification code. Anyone — an employer, a lender, an agency — can check that code against the issuing record on the certificate verification page.
- Progress
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How do I check what has happened to my application?
Use the status page with your application reference and the phone number you applied with. You are told which stage your application has reached — submitted, awaiting countersignature, in verification, screened, shortlisted or enrolled.
- Countersignature
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My nominating authority has not countersigned. What now?
The countersignature link expires after 14 days. If it has expired or the email did not arrive, contact the programme office and a fresh link is issued to the same authority. Your application is not discarded in the meantime.
For nominating authorities
Countersigning a nomination
For designated officers of a Local Government Area, a traditional institution, a registered cooperative or a relevant Ministry, Department or Agency.
- Who may sign
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Who may countersign a nomination?
A designated officer of a Local Government Area, a traditional institution, a registered cooperative, or a relevant Ministry, Department or Agency. The officer countersigns in their official capacity and gives their designation and organisation on the form.
- What it means
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What am I attesting to when I countersign?
That the nominee is known to you or to your institution, that they reside in the Local Government Area given on the form, and that they meet the priority criteria of the stream they have chosen. You are not guaranteeing them a place: selection, verification and enrolment are carried out by the programme office.
- In practice
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How does countersigning work in practice?
You receive an email containing a single-use link, valid for 14 days. Opening it shows you the nomination as submitted. You approve or decline, give your name, and may attach a scan of your official stamp. No account and no password is needed. The link works on a phone.
- Declining
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Can I decline a nomination?
Yes, and you should if you cannot attest to it. You are asked for a short reason. The nominee is informed that the nomination was not countersigned; the reason is held on the record and is available to them on request.
- Bulk lists
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Can I nominate a list of people in bulk?
No. Each nominee completes their own form, because the form collects personal data that only that person can give and consent to — date of birth, National Identification Number, disability status and accommodation needs. What an authority can do is direct nominees to the form, hold nomination clinics, and countersign each nomination as it arrives.
- Allocation
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Is there a quota for my Local Government Area?
The 1,500 places are allocated across all thirteen Local Government Areas and the three streams so that no Local Government Area is excluded. The allocation is published before nominations close. Demand will exceed supply, particularly in agriculture, and the allocation is the answer to that rather than a larger promise.
- Your data
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What happens to the data about me?
Your name, designation, organisation, address, phone number, email address, your decision and any reason you give are held as part of the nomination record, on the same lawful basis as the rest of the nomination. What that means, and how long it is kept, is set out in the privacy notice.
- Fraud
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Someone is asking my nominees for money. What should I do?
Report it to the programme office immediately, with whatever detail you have. No fee is payable at any stage of this programme, to anyone, for any reason.