Foundation unveils initiative to lift millions in South West from poverty

Chairman, Foundation for Innovation and Technology Development, Prof Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, said a rural development initiative, Transformed Communities, will lift millions of Nigerians in the South-West out of poverty by increasing daily incomes from about $2 to between $10 and $15.

The programme, known as Transformed Communities, is being implemented through a partnership involving the South-West Development Commission and Foundation for Technology Innovation and Sustainable Development alongside public and private sector actors.

Speaking on Tuesday, at the unveiling of the South-West TransCom Programme held at the IITA, Ibadan, Oyelaran-Oyeyinka explained that TRANSCOM would cluster three to five villages, with populations ranging from 2,000 to 8,000 people, into integrated development hubs.

Within these hubs, basic amenities such as electricity, water, schools, healthcare, and internet services would be provided, transforming rural settlements into productive economic centres.

“When we make life livable in those places, rural-urban drift will stop. Young people will stay, create, and build their future there,” he said.

Oyelaran-Oyeyinka said the initiative was designed to fundamentally change the economic realities of rural communities. “What we are chasing is to take people from this so-called $2 per day to $10 per day in the next three to four years.

“Our target is to lift people from $2 to $10 to $15 per day and ensure that these communities become poles of prosperity instead of poles of poverty,” he said.

He explained that TransComs—short for “Transformed Communities”—is an integrated development model that clusters three to five villages, each with a population of 2,000 to 8,000 people, into functional economic hubs.

According to him, the programme will provide critical infrastructure such as electricity, water, roads, schools, clinics, and internet connectivity to make rural life more livable and economically viable.

“We want to create spaces where there is light, there is processing, there is joy. “When we make life livable in those places, rural-urban drift will stop. Young people will stay, create value, and build livelihoods,” he said.

He noted that one of the core objectives of the initiative is to address post-harvest losses, which he said account for up to 70 per cent of agricultural produce in some areas due to poor infrastructure.

“A farmer produces onions or potatoes, but the produce is lost because there is no road, no storage, no processing. That is unacceptable.

“At the centre of TransComs is value addition—processing what we produce so that farmers can earn more,” he said.

The professor added that the model incorporates seven pillars, including infrastructure, agricultural productivity, agro-processing, social protection, microfinance, digital systems, and governance.

He also disclosed that a public-private partnership model is already underway to deliver electricity to pilot communities through a hybrid grid combining solar and gas, with an estimated capacity of 0.7 megawatts.

Highlighting a pilot site in Fapote, Ogbomoso area of Oyo State, Oyelaran-Oyeyinka praised ongoing infrastructure improvements, noting that access roads built by the state government had already enhanced the viability of the project.

“All we need now is just about one kilometre to complete the link, and the government has already done the heavy lifting,” he said.

He stressed that the initiative is not merely conceptual but action-driven.

“This is not a conference to talk. It is about commitment and partnership. What are we going to do about this?” he asked participants.

In his goodwill message, Mr. Femi Alaka from the Office of the Vice President, commended SWDC and its partners for the initiative, describing it as a significant step toward regional development.

“Today marks not just the unveiling of a programme, but the beginning of a shared journey rooted in collaboration, innovation, and a collective commitment to sustainable development,” he said.

Alaka emphasised the importance of partnerships in achieving meaningful transformation.

“Transformation does not occur in isolation. It requires partnership—between government and the private sector, between institutions and communities, and among individuals willing to act decisively,” he added.

He urged participants to engage constructively and contribute ideas that would translate into practical and inclusive solutions.

Also speaking, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of SWDC, Dr. Charles Akinola, said TransComs was developed as a structured response to decades of deepening rural poverty in the South-West despite the region’s economic strength.

“Within a region of extraordinary enterprise and advantage, rural poverty has deepened steadily for more than four decades. “TransComs is our structured response to reverse that trend,” Akinola said.

He traced the concept to historical rural development efforts, including the farm settlement schemes of the old Western Region under Chief Obafemi Awolowo, noting that those initiatives once drove agricultural prosperity and funded social services.

“The philosophy was simple: if you give a young person a productive future where they are, they will not leave,” he said. Akinola added that subsequent programmes such as OPTICOM, DFFRI, and state-level agricultural schemes had demonstrated the viability of community-driven development but were often limited by weak execution and lack of scale.

“TransComs is not entirely new; it is the result of 70 years of learning—drawing from both successes and shortcomings,” he said.

He explained that the programme would be implemented across 137 local government areas in the six South-West states, with pilot projects already underway and broader rollout expected to begin in the third quarter of 2026.

According to him, the initiative aligns with national priorities on food security, job creation, and inclusive growth.

“The programme is moving at pace because the problem has not been waiting,” he added.

Akinola also highlighted the importance of co-creation, noting that the roundtable was designed to bring together government agencies, private investors, development partners, and community stakeholders to refine the model and secure commitments.

“The outcomes from these discussions will form the basis of an Action Committee charged with delivering the TransComs within the year,” he said.

Oyo SSG, Prof. Musbau Babatunde, declared the two-day conference opened.

Stakeholders at the event expressed optimism that, if effectively implemented, the TransComs initiative could unlock significant economic potential, reduce poverty, and reposition rural communities as centres of productivity and growth.