…Reveals new youth empowerment campaign
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has said the empowerment of Nigerian youth remains the driving force of his Renewed Hope Agenda, noting that they are critical to the future of the nation.
Tinubu reaffirmed his commitment to youth empowerment on Tuesday at the launch of the second edition of the Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA) Startup Grants and the launch of the NiYA Gig digital job platform in Abuja.
Represented at the event by his Chief of Staff, Honorable Femi Gbajabiamila, President Tinubu said he was determined to work his talks to make Nigerian youths globally competitive through digital skills and business support programmes.
He said: “From the earliest days of this administration, I have made a firm decision that the youth of Nigeria will not be left out of our national development. This commitment is not political; it is personal.”
Speaking about opportunities for youth-led businesses, the President’s Chief of Staff mentioned facilitating tax compliance for small businesses, incentivizing the digital and creative economy and building a pipeline of young global service providers through NiYA Academy, NiYA Startup, NiYA Jobs and the recently launched NiYA Gigs.
Tinubu commended the Ministry of Youth Development for expanding the reach of the program after the inaugural edition, which attracted over 14,000 applications across the country.
Earlier in his presentation, the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, announced grants of N1 million each for 200 youth-led startups and N500,000 each for 100 informal sector beneficiaries.
He revealed that the current administration has taken the initiative to build a comprehensive youth empowerment ecosystem encompassing skill acquisition, business creation and income generation.
He also launched NiYA Gig, a national digital job platform aimed at linking Nigerian youth with paid opportunities locally and globally, while highlighting the success of initiatives such as the Nigerian Youth Helpdesk and a WhatsApp AI chatbot that has already engaged over a million youth.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of Economy, Wale Edun, has expressed hope that with ongoing digital infrastructure, training and innovation, the Federal Government is already preparing Nigeria’s young population for global competition.
He said: “Nigeria’s youth is our demographic advantage. With proper preparation, young Africans will represent 25 percent of the global workforce by 2050.”
He noted that expanding broadband access and automation will enable young Nigerians to export digital services without leaving the country.
In her presentation, the Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite Udoka, said the financial sector reforms undertaken by the Tinubu administration would encourage smooth access to credit, expand concessional lending, strengthen tax incentives and expand digital infrastructure for youth-led MSMEs.
He said: “These initiatives are deliberately designed to stimulate entrepreneurship and deepen the creativity that defines the Nigerian spirit.”
Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman, told the meeting that the success of the current administration’s goal of a $1 trillion economy is linked to unlocking the full potential of Nigeria’s youth.
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