While the much vaunted leaders of tomorrow still grapple with unemployment, the craze for greener pastures abroad, get-rich-quick syndrome and deployment as political mercenaries, observers have reckoned that the National Youth Conference should not only be an avenue for roundtable dialogue, but a clarion call to implement youth-centric policies, ensure strong representation in public offices and build leadership skills. Youth activists, students and stakeholders believe that this would address the myriad of woes bedevilling the youth population once described as “lazy”, DAMOLA KOLA-DARE reports
Miffed by the situation of the youth, which constitutes a larger percentage of the nation’s population, President Bola Tinubu proposed a National Youth Conference to provide an avenue for critical discourse and chart a way forward for the young ones.
The Federal Government had fixed the conference for the first quarter of the year. The President said it would be a 30-day affair to address critical issues facing the youth, including unemployment, education and political participation.
The planned conference was part of the administration’s response to the youth-led protests, including #EndBadGovernance in August 2024 and the #FearlessOctober in October 2024.
Stressing the significance of the conference, the President said: “The conference aims to 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.
Though many are still wondering why the conference has not held and why the presidency remained mum on the issue, stakeholders, youth activists, students have made their stance known on expectations and what needs to be done before the conference can be deemed to have impact.
Adedimeji: confab should promote social responsibility, others
Vice Chancellor of the African School of Economics, Abuja, Prof. Mahfouz Adedimeji said with the youths’ “morbid obsession” to make money, the conference agenda should prioritise education and love for lifelong learning, commitment to personal growth (self-awareness, emotional intelligence, resilience and positive mental attitude), capacity building, social responsibility, leadership skills, health and wellbeing, including the dangers of substance abuse, political consciousness and environmental awareness.
The don expressed optimism that it will impact the youth if the theme, subthemes/topics are well-selected with the right resource persons and the various sessions well conducted.
He said: “The conference agenda should be on making the youth realise that not everything that counts can be counted. There is a morbid obsession with making money by the youth today to the extent that desperation has become their defining characteristic.
“The agenda should be on promoting education and love for life-long learning, commitment to personal growth (self-awareness, emotional intelligence, resilience, positive mental attitude), capacity building, social responsibility, especially sense of volunteering, leadership skills, health and wellbeing, including the dangers of substance abuse, political consciousness and environmental awareness.
“These are the areas that would make the youth have a sense of direction, not this obsession with achieving financial breakthrough by hook or by crook.
“Francis Bacon had written long ago that reading makes a full man and conference a ready man. I believe the conference should prepare or make the youth ready for a new mindset based on the philosophy that not everything that counts can be counted, not ‘you either make money or die trying’.
“It is part of what is needed because proper orientation is key and the conference should be aimed at that end. Without having a sense of focus, purpose, self-awareness and social responsibility, the youth especially as our largest demographic would just be drifting aimlessly like a boat on unchartered seas.
“What is the percentage of those who are genuinely fulfilled among those who have migrated? With critical thinking skills, the youth will understand the imperative of casting down their buckets where they are as it rains everywhere.”
LASU students’ leader: policies that foster vocational education imperative
Erstwhile President of Lagos State University Social Science Education Students Association (LASSESA-LASU) Adetimirin Yusuf stressed the need to implement policies that would encourage youths to imbibe vocational training and education.
“In the emigration data, 70 per cent of the emigrants are youths. And ‘who’ and ‘what’, should be deliberated for national conscience.
“According to NBS-FMYD, 60 per cent of educated Nigerian youths have secondary education as their highest level of education; 19 per cent of educated Nigerian youths have post-secondary education; five per cent have education below primary school.
“Yesterday’s future is today’s reality shaping the history of tomorrow. Money causes inflation while production reduces inflation. The more you produce, the stronger and wealthier you are as a nation.
“Productive activities must be implemented through the data analysis above to encourage vocational education for youths.”
‘Youths need mentorship, entrepreneurship opportunity’
Abdullateef Faruq, a 300-Level student of Education English at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (UDUS), noted that the programme should engender policies that encourage entrepreneurship, ensuring that young people can create jobs instead of just searching for them.
He stressed that youths need access to quality education, skill acquisition, and mentorship programmes that prepare them for the realities of contemporary times.
He said: “The agenda should go beyond just discussions. It should focus on practical solutions. Our youth need access to quality education, skill acquisition and mentorship programmes that would prepare them for the realities of today’s world.
“We also need policies that encourage entrepreneurship, ensuring that young people can create jobs instead of just searching for them. Another crucial aspect is political inclusion. If we want real change, young people must be involved in decision-making, not just as spectators but as active contributors.
“If well-executed, the conference can be a game-changer. It can serve as a platform where young people not only voice their concerns, but also connect with policymakers, industry leaders and mentors who can guide them. Imagine a scenario where a young entrepreneur gets access to funding or where a graduate without opportunities learns a high-income skill during the conference. That kind of impact goes beyond mere conversations; it brings real change.
“Many young people are leaving because they feel there’s no hope here, no jobs, no security and no support for their dreams. So, while a conference is great, it must address these causes. If young people see real policies being implemented, better job opportunities, an improved economy, and security. they’ll be more willing to stay. Otherwise, no matter how many conferences we hold, they’ll still seek better opportunities elsewhere.”
Varsity graduate: confab not enough, policy implementation vital
A graduate of Lagos State University (LASU), Jimoh Tolani Wahab, said though the conference is important to drive conversations, the real deal lies in policy implementation, investment in youth, and long-term economic strategies for all round development.
He said: “Conference alone is not enough. While it can start conversations and propose solutions, real change comes from policy implementation, investment in youth and long-term economic strategies. Youths are leaving due to unemployment, insecurity and lack of opportunities. Without fixing these, the conference may just be another talk show. There should be a focus on practical solutions rather than just discussions.
“For the conference to have real impact, there must be clear deliverables, funding and a strict implementation plan. Instead of just talking, leaders should sign a Youth Development Action Plan with specific goals and timelines.
“Government and private sector partnership is vital to creating an employment scheme, where private companies are given tax incentives for hiring and training young people.
“Government should create incentives for skilled professionals abroad to invest and work in their home country. Create diaspora investment fund to allow emigrated youth to invest in profitable local projects with guaranteed returns.
“There should be a youth entrepreneurship fund with low-interest loans and grants for small businesses and startups. Government should establish technical hubs where youths can get hands-on training in digital skills, agriculture, renewable energy and creative industries. Government should also pass laws ensuring youth involvement in governance, budgeting and national planning, and set up an academy where young leaders are trained in governance, leadership, and public administration.
“There is need to support young people involved in crime, drug abuse, or violence to be reintegrated into the society through skill acquisition programmes.
“There should be a monitoring body to ensure that decisions made at the conference are executed. Government and stakeholders should publish updates on actions taken; create a public website tracking the success of youth policies with transparency.”
It can be a game-changer for youths, says poly student
Adeyeye Faridat Ajoke, a student at Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, said: “First, the agenda should focus not only on discussion, but also on providing practical solutions around them. Our youths need more access to latest technology, western education, skill acquisition, leadership and mentorship programmes that prepare them for the future.
“We also need entrepreneurship programmes, seminars that enable young people to be able to identify problems around them and be able to solve them based on their intellectual ability. And the crucial aspect is political view, i.e the youth must understand that the politics world is not how they view it in the normal way.
“For me, if it is well-executed by elite scholars, it can be a good turnaround in the life of the youth. It can also enlighten them in meeting new people with opportunities for them – people who can mentor them for life. Imagine as the world is now where a youth graduated without any high income skills or without any knowledge about Affiliate Marketing, Virtual Assistant etc. The impact really brings a lot of change to most youths and also give them opportunity to view things differently.
“Many youths think without power or affluence, they can’t certainly attain greater heights. So, if a conference is the solution, it must first address the root of the problem. If youths see the policies aligned with their ideals being implemented, there will be an improved economy and they won’t be seeking greener pastures outside the country.”
NANS President: expedite action on confab
The National President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Lucky Emonefe, wants the Federal Government to expedite action on the planned conference.
According to him, part of the demands NANS would attend the confab is increased youth participation in government, adding that at least half of all public leadership and decision-making positions must be held by young people.
“We never expected that the conference would take this long. This youth confab and engagement with the youth is very important. We urge the Minister of Youth to please expedite action. Mr. President should put action to his words to ensure that the conference takes place because it is an opportunity for Nigerian youths to express their mind, their challenges and demands.
“We want a situation whereby like 50 per cent of government position would be occupied by youths so that we can attend to the needs of the youth,” he said.
