As part of its commitment to laying a foundation towards a more open and inclusive government that allows for increased youth participation in making key national decisions in governance, economic development and national security, the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (FMYSD) will be holding a National Youth Conference (NYC) in Abuja from October 12 – 15, 2021.
The Youth Conference, approved by President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, is perhaps the first of its kind in Nigeria and will be completely private sector driven with the government creating the enabling environment for the private sector to contribute its quota to initiatives that will promote the place of the youth in nation building, governance, economy, peace and national security.
The event provides another opportunity to dialogue, harmonise and capture the goals, concerns, aspirations, plans and contributions of the Nigerian youth towards the creation of an effective and efficient approach for future government engagements and implementation of solutions for the delivery of good governance to all Nigerians.
This Youth conference will bring together over 370 youths from all 36 (thirty six) states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and over 200 high level officials from the three tiers of government and some of their agencies, high achieving youths, chieftains from various economic sectors, multilateral agencies, social enterprise organisations and experts in academic, religious and traditional areas. In all over 500 persons are expected to attend and participate in the 4-day event which will also include a Team Building Exercise session based on the outcomes of the thematic areas.
The delegates, resource persons and youths will brainstorm in 5 (Five) thematic-specific Breakout Sessions and harmonise cross-cutting, multi-dimensional issues with significant impact on the development of a new and progressive Nigeria that is well adapted to the realities and challenges of the 21st century.
The Thematic Areas will focus on Politics & Nation Building, Education & Youth development, Peace, Unity & Security, Innovation & Technology, and Soft Power of Sports, Entertainment & Creatives.[
According to the Honourable Minister, Chief Sunday Dare, “The goal of this intervention is the development of an effective planning and delivery model for coordinating an inclusive national youth dialogue with an underpinning objective to reform the mindset of our youth towards government processes and the development of an integrated feedback mechanism that conveys the bottlenecks and hardships faced by young Nigerians. Standing in the very words of Mr. President, our mission is to drive home the promise that this administration will do everything to make sure that Nigeria works for our youth and that is what this laudable initiative seeks to kick start”.
The outcomes of the National Youth Conference and the proceedings of the breakout sessions will form an integral part of the ongoing process towards a more inclusive Nigeria that will accommodate the objectives, interests and contributions of its youth in the Public, Social Enterprise and Private Sectors and enable them contribute to the growth of the socio-economic indices of the Nigeria Economy and a more vibrant Nigeria for all.
