Youth activists have called for increased involvement for youth across several sectors to ensure real national development.
They made the call on Thursday during a webinar organised by Oxfam in Nigeria’s Work in Progress (WIP!) alliance to formally launched phase two of the #BeingYounginNaija campaign.
The virtual town hall event, titled “How many youths are left?” was held to explore challenges facing young people in Nigeria and how to tackle them, and was part of activities commemorating the 2021 International Youth Day.
The WiP! Coordinator, Princewill Ogbodo, said that the #BeingYoungInNaija campaign is meant to celebrate the resilience and ingenuity of the Nigerian youth.
He said the campaign seeks to amplify young voices and provide them with opportunities and platforms to express their skills.
One of the panellists and program officer, YIAGA Africa, Ibrahim Faruk, noted that young people are the nation’s most significant resources and should be harnessed to reposition the country for growth and good governance.
“There has been remarkable progress in the wake of the #NotTooYoungToRun campaign. However, young people also have an opportunity to take part actively in politics. We need to take advantage of the ongoing Voters Registration exercise being carried out by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register and vote during elections,” he said.
Hassana Maina of the #ArewaMeToo Movement decried the state of the youth in the nation, saying, “Being a young person in Nigeria is tiring and exhausting, mainly because the system has not lived up to expectations in the administration of justice.”
She called for an overhaul of the judicial system and encouraged young Nigerians, asking them not to give up on their dreams for a better standard of living.
Another panellist, Olumide Idowu of the International Climate Change Development Initiative (ICCDI), noted a gap in collaborative processes in the search for positive changes in youth welfare.
“We must seek avenues of collaboration and build solid movements for the solutions we want to see in the future,” he said.
Also, Educator and co-founder Educating Africa, Tessy Mosindi, expressing optimism like other panellists, urged young Nigerians to believe in their ability to transform the nation.
Participants Idris Mohammed and Yunusa Abubakar expressed hope that the #BeingYounginNaija campaign would encourage Nigerian youth to participate in governance activities and use their skills to better society.
The #BeingYounginNaija youth advocacy campaign launched in September 2020 and being implemented by Chioma Chuka Consulting Services (CCCSL), was aims at creating employment opportunities and positive expectations about the future for young Nigerians by focusing on the labour market’s supply, demand, and enabling environment.
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