IN SHORT: A graphic circulating online claims the Nigerian government has extended the timeline for a youth agricultural support programme. But no change has been officially announced.
Nigeria’s youth economic intervention and de-radicalization programme (YEIDEP) is a youth-targeted agricultural support scheme run by the Federal Ministry of Youth Development.
It is part of broader efforts to tackle unemployment, promote food security and diversify Nigeria’s economy away from oil.
On 24 April the ministry said applications would close on 31 May and funds would be disbursed “to beneficiaries in Batch A” in July 2025.
But in July, a graphic circulated on Facebook in Nigeria with claims that the application deadline had been extended to 31 August, with disbursement now set for end-October.
The claim appeared on Facebook here and here. (Note: See other instances of the claim at the end of this report.)
But has the Nigerian government extended the YEIDEP timeline? We checked.
No evidence of timeline extension
The newer graphic that lists extended dates into September and October does not appear on any official platform of the ministry.
There are no public statements from the ministry or its officials, and no media reports on a change in the application or disbursement dates.
This suggests that there is no new timeline, and deadlines remain as first advertised by the ministry.
The false claim can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
For publishers: what to do if your post is rated false
A fact-checker has rated your Facebook or Instagram post as “false”, “altered”, “partly false” or “missing context”. This could have serious consequences. What do you do?
Click on our guide for the steps you should follow.
Publishers guideAfrica Check teams up with Facebook
Africa Check is a partner in Meta's third-party fact-checking programme to help stop the spread of false information on social media.
The content we rate as “false” will be downgraded on Facebook and Instagram. This means fewer people will see it.
You can also help identify false information on Facebook. This guide explains how.
Add new comment