By Gift Chapi Odekina
The House of Representatives on Wednesday moved to investigate the 774,000 youth employment by the Presidential Youth Empowerment Scheme across the country.
The resolution was passed sequel to the adoption of a motion sponsored by Rep. Muhammed Gudaji Kazaure, who called for the House intervention with a view to ensure effective implementation of the scheme.
In the bid to ensure adequate funding of the scheme, the House mandated its Committee on Appropriations to capture the Scheme in the 2022 budget estimates.
According to him, President Muhammadu Buhari had on 12 October 2020 launched the Presidential Youth Empowerment Scheme in Abuja with a view to create at least 774,000 empowerment opportunities through direct Youth Empowerment, which is one thousand youth per Local Governments across the six geopolitical zone in the efforts of the Federal Government to eradicate unemployment among the teeming youth.
“The House is aware that the primary role of the Scheme is to provide solutions to the Nigerian youth unemployment challenges through the execution of empowerment initiatives.
“The House also notes that the Scheme will be accessible to the literate, semi-literate and the non-literate population and the entry qualification is the ability and capacity to learn and be teachable.
“The House is worried that since the Scheme was launched in 2020, it is yet to be implemented despite applications by the Nigerian youth.”
To this end, the House resolved to invite the Co-coordinator of the Scheme, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Youth and Students Affairs, to explain to Nigerians reasons for the non-implementation of the Scheme despite the Presidential directives.
To this end, the House unveiled plans to constitute an Ad-hoc Committee that will investigate reason(s) for the non-implementation of the Scheme and report back within two weeks for further legislative action.
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