By Stella Odueme
The Minister of Youth Development, Comrade Olawande, has said that his major priority as minster is to empower, protect and support Nigerian youth, both those in the formal and informal sectors to equip them with tools to excel and contribute to the growth and development of the country.
Olawande who disclosed this said the ministry has over 7,000 programmes in MDAs which currently are on the ministry”s dashboard.
He harped on partnership to actualise his dreams for the youth.
The Minister stated this on Tuesday at a media parley where he spoke passionately about his vision to change the old narratives and put the youth on the roadmap to success by carrying them along in the ministry’s programmes and intiatives stressing that the era of you must know somebody before you benefit has come to an end.
He outlined some of the initiatives as; Youth Bank, Youth Trust Fund, Nigerian Youth Academy, Nigerian Youth Help Desk, and the innovative One Youth 2 Skills program, among others.
He praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for appointing a youth as minister of Youth Development, describing it as commendable and a testament to Mr. President Commitment to the upliftment of the young people in the country.
“The ministry is ready to work with all government and non-governmental organizations. The
ministry has made up its mind with the help of the organizations working under the ministry
for the youth to have a voice.
we will work with
Mr. President to make sure that we have an environment that every young people of this
country will thrive.
If we have an environment that will thrive, nobody will be looking for jobs.
He announced that the Nigerian Youth Academy, the Ministry’s equivalent of Coursera, will be launched in January to further equip the youth.
He explained this online learning platform will provide Nigerian youth an opportunity to have access to quality education in their preferred languages in acquiring skills as well as
serve as a bridge to global opportunities for the youth.
“We want to ensure that young people in both urban and rural areas can learn and grow in their chosen fields,” he said.
The minister also unveiled plans to establish Greenhouses in the 774 local government areas of the country to empower young entrepreneurs.
“These greenhouses will produce goods from raw materials found within local communities, creating self-reliant economies and reducing dependence on imports.
We want the greenhouses to be impactful, to reflect the strengths of each local government. Every community has something unique to offer, and we are harnessing that potential for economic growth,” he stated.
The Minister unveiled another key project, the Youth Activities Dashboard, an interactive platform designed to collate and showcase all government initiatives targeting youth empowerment.
“This dashboard will ensure transparency and accurate information. No more fake stories or unfounded claims. Nigerian youth can now track and engage with government programs directly,” he said.
He appealed to the youth to embrace the new era and reject distractions.
“Don’t let political gamblers deceive you. The present administration, under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is committed to giving you the tools to thrive in life.
” I want to make it clear that the ministry, is open. We are all open. And
the website of the ministry is open for large numbers of young people to go on there and take what
we are doing and how we are going to do it.
We are working on it, we keep updating on it, and we are giving it back to the Nigerian youth,” Olawande stated.
