FG, BOI to establish youth development bank

The federal government, in partnership with the Bank of Industry, has concluded plans to set up “NextGen” bank aimed at nurturing youth entrepreneurs with loans and business support.

This was made known by the Minister of Youth Development, Dr Jamila Bio Ibrahim, during the Ministerial Sectoral Update to mark the first year in office of the President Bola Tinubu administration held at the Radio House in Abuja yesterday.

During her presentation, the minister said the establishment of the bank was in line with the mandate of the ministry which was “to formulate, implement, monitor and evaluate policies and programmes that promoted youth development, wealth creation, youth empowerment, wellbeing, excellence, national unity and sustainable development with the ultimate goal of empowering young Nigerians to reach their full potential and contribute positively to the nation’s growth and development.”

Speaking further, she said the ministry was assigned 11 deliverables within specific presidential priorities which included the establishment of a framework that enabled the creation and expansion of multiple Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) incubators, accelerators and innovation centres in the six geopolitical zones.

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She further revealed that 146,998 Nigerians had been targeted for vocational, social inclusion, technology, agriculture, entrepreneurship training, just as the Federal Executive Council had given approval of N110bn capital to startups and early growth stage businesses via the restructured Nigerian Youth Investment Fund (NYIF), as well as commencement of the institutionalisation of a 30 per cent Youth Quota with equitable young women inclusion in all government appointments.