CBN to Open N75 Billion Nigeria Youth Investment Fund for Application Soon

The Central Bank of Nigeria has said it will announce the Nigeria Youth Investment Fund soon to support Nigerian youths as unemployment jumped to 27.1 percent in the second quarter.

The apex bank has launched numerous funds to deepen growth and ease the negative impact of COVID-19 on Nigerian youths, Africa’s largest youth population and one of the largest in the world.

As stated on the apex bank website, the Nigeria Youth Investment Fund (NYIF) is a N75 billion investment fund approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in August to address the financial needs of 500,000 youths from 2020 to 2023.

According to the CBN, approval will range from N250,000 to N50 million with a spread across group applications, individual applications and working capital loans with a single-digit interest rate of 5 percent.

The fund was approved in August by the Federal Executive Council, the first of such approval.

Following the FEC meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari in August, the presidency had tweeted that, “We recently established a 75 billion Naira Nigerian Youth Investment Fund (NYIF), as part of our commitment to creating opportunities for the youth of Nigeria. On this occasion of International Youth Day, I urge all our young people to take advantage of these opportunities.”

Nigeria youth investment fund website/portal

There is no dedicated website or portal to Nigeria Youth Investment Fund, applicants would have to go through the 125 micro-credit banks across the country to access the fund.

How to apply for the Nigeria Youth Investment Fund

To apply for the Nigeria Youth Investment Fund, you must have a fundable business idea, be a registered business owner in Nigeria and be a Nigerian citizen.

Also, you must be between the age of 18 and 35 to be qualified for the fund.

The fund would be disbursed to qualified applicants through one of the numerous microcredit institutions in Nigeria under the Central Bank of Nigeria but supported by BOI, Fintech Organisations and Venture Capital Organisations registered with the apex bank.

This is coming after the Federal Government introduced Survival Fund a week ago to stimulate growth in small and medium businesses and cushion the economy from the impact of COVID-19 that is expected by many to plunge it into recession in this third quarter.