President Bola Tinubu has announced plans to convene a National Youth Conference aimed at channeling the creative potential of young Nigerians towards shaping the future of the nation.
The President made this declaration during his Independence Day broadcast on Tuesday morning.
According to Tinubu, the 30-day conference is vital to stabilizing Nigeria’s economy, securing the country, and fostering national unity.
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He emphasized that involving young people, who make up more than 60% of the population, is key to achieving social harmony and cohesion.
“As we work to overcome the challenges of the day, we remain mindful of the next generation as we seek to galvanize their creative energy towards a better future,” said the President. “We lead today with the future we wish to bequeath to our children in focus, recognizing that we cannot design a future that belongs to them without making them its architects.”
Tinubu explained that the conference will serve as a platform for addressing issues that directly impact the youth, including education, employment, innovation, security, and social justice.
He added, “This conference will provoke meaningful dialogue and empower our young people to participate actively in nation-building. By ensuring that their voices are heard in shaping the policies that impact their lives, we are creating a pathway for a brighter tomorrow.”
The President assured that the government, in consultation with youth representatives, would carefully design the conference’s modalities and selection of delegates. Tinubu pledged that the recommendations from the conference would be thoroughly considered and implemented, as part of the government’s mission to build a more inclusive, prosperous, and united Nigeria.
Additionally, Tinubu highlighted that his administration had already begun implementing several youth-focused programs to ensure young Nigerians are equipped for the future.
“Our government is implementing several other youth-centric programmes to give our young people an advantage in the rapidly changing world,” he said. “Among these is the 3 million Technical Talents programme (3MTT) of the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, aimed at building Nigeria’s technical talent backbone.”
Tinubu also referenced the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which provides affordable loans for students pursuing tertiary education, and announced the upcoming launch of the Renewed Hope Labour Employment and Empowerment Programme (LEEP). The LEEP is designed to create 2.5 million jobs annually, while also focusing on the welfare and safety of workers across the country.
