Int’l Youth Day: Labour urges youth to be proactive

The National Youth Council (NYC) of the Nigeria Labour Congress in partnership with ActionAid Nigeria (AAN) has commiserated with the youth in the country and around world on the 2019 International Youth Day held in Abuja, yesterday.

The occasion which had its theme “Promote Youth Employment: Ensure Economic Independence for the Young” holds on 12th August annually had been shifted to Thursday (yesterday) as the date back clashed with the Sallah festival.

The ActionAid forum provides participants with the platform to be educated on what is enshrined in the National Employment Policy and also to introduce them to the broader discussion around gender and responsive service delivery.

Addressing the youth congress, the NLC president, comrade Ayuba Wabba tasked Nigerian youths on selfdevelopment stressing that they need to showcase their skills, “through your work, intellect, skills, opportunities will be created. Don’t wait for opportunities to come.”

Wabba stated that one of the greatest challenges in Africa and the world all over is youth unemployment. “There is no family today in Nigeria you will not find youth unemployed. In the political arena, youth have also made efforts, nothing stops them from making efforts. You may have the law but difficult to implement the law. We have heard about the ‘Not too young to run’ law but a lot of other activities have taken over it,” he said.

Responding to a question on youth competence, he said, “No, Nigerian youth are full of potential, let us not underrate ourselves. Identify your potential, explore it. In doing so, you will not only add value to yourself but also to the country.”

The programme officer, AAN, Comrade Blessing Ifemenam said, “The Youth Organizing and Leadership (YOL) project intends to mobilize young people to influence public opinion and government actions on public finance and gender responsive public service.”

Earlier, the NLC National Youth Committee (NYC) Chairperson, Comrade Victor Ekpo stressed the need for the government to ensure the inclusion of the youth not only in employment but also in political, economic, and other sphere of life.