“Start Akara, Roast Corn, Sell Kuli Kuli” – Remi Tinubu Tells Nigerians Struggling With Hardship

Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, has encouraged Nigerians not to lose hope despite the country’s economic difficulties, saying many small businesses can be started with little capital and can provide a steady source of income.

Speaking about the Federal Government’s efforts to support citizens, the First Lady said businesses such as selling akara, roasting corn and producing kuli-kuli require minimal investment and could help many Nigerians earn a living.

“We’re trying to give hope and to start akara business doesn’t take a lot of money,” she said.

“To start roasting corn or somebody even said about grants, you see they’re saying that kuli-kuli doesn’t take much.”

Mrs Tinubu explained that the support being provided to beneficiaries under some government programmes comes as grants and not loans.

“We didn’t give them a loan, we gave it to them as a grant,” she stated.

The First Lady also highlighted several interventions she said she had personally supported to improve the welfare of vulnerable Nigerians.

According to her, she donated ₦2 billion to help combat tuberculosis, ₦1 billion towards breast cancer initiatives and ₦500 million to address food malnutrition across the country.

“I remember giving for TB, when I heard there’s so much TB cases, I gave two billion. To breast cancer, I gave a billion. To food malnutrition, I gave half a billion,” she said.

She added that the administration has also invested in social intervention programmes, education, scholarships and ICT training in collaboration with relevant government agencies.

“So in our work we’ve done, in social investment we have, in education we’ve given a little bit of scholarship, ICT training and with NITDA,” she said.

Mrs Tinubu said Nigerians should embrace hope rather than despair, stressing that the country’s story should inspire confidence instead of discouragement.

“The narrative has really changed to challenge the average man, whereas the average man is supposed to have hope,” she said.

She also expressed support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, saying Nigerians should continue believing in the country’s future.

“We have to renew our hope and that’s how we renew our hope,” she said.

The First Lady concluded by urging citizens not to give up on Nigeria.

“They don’t give up, just keep, we are a very proud nation,” she added.

“To start an akara business doesn’t take a lot of money. Roasting corn or selling kuli kuli also doesn’t require much capital. We’ve encouraged Nigerians and provided grants to many people.”

— Oluremi Tinubu speaks on small businesses and government support. 🇳🇬💬 pic.twitter.com/kwg6KtuBfv

— NaijaWide Media (@Naijawide01) June 26, 2026