LAGOS GOVT TO PARTNER FEDERAL HOUSE COMMITTEE ON YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
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Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu has said that the State is ready to collaborate with the Federal House of Representatives Committee on Youth Development in the passage of necessary legislation and initiatives that will enhance youth development in the country.
Speaking through the Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat while receiving the Members of the Federal House of Representative Committee on Youth Development led by the Chairman, Hon. Martin Esin on a courtesy visit to the State, on Friday, the Governor stated that Lagos is very open to collaboration with any relevant bodies, given different initiatives and ideas within the system that it would like to share with the Federal Government as the nation needs to keep deliberating on the youths’ demography.
Sanwo-Olu noted that owing to the significant position the youths occupied in the State, his administration has put in place numerous initiatives to train the youths on different skills and ensure that they are adequately empowered.
“The youth demography is very important and based on this data, our government has initiated many programmes targeted at the development of the youths because we have realised that if we don’t get it right with our youths, we all will be in serious trouble, if not now, but in the future”, he said.
The Governor added that Lagos deliberately included the “PLUS” which is social inclusion and youth empowerment in its THEMES agenda because it found out that the government must focus on the youth and provide more recreational centres where they can also meet and discuss.
He further noted that his administration is considering a partnership with the NYSC to review the duration of the orientation programme to accommodate more training for the youths on innovations. This is to enable them to benefit from the innovation grants organised by the State Government through Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC).
Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the State Government is committed to providing an adequate permanent site for the NYSC camp in the state. He averred that the State Government recognised that the existing camp is not adequate to the demand of the continuous increase in the numbers of corpers seeking redeployment to the State and is assiduously working on this.
The Governor, therefore, commended the Committee on the initiative of establishing a National Council on Youth which he said, will provide a platform for different states in the country to share experiences and challenges while collectively proffering solutions to move the youths and nation forward.
Bemoaning the challenges of homelessness and drugs among youths in the State, the governor disclosed that the State Government is coming up with local legislation on the matter, among which it would prescribe that any property where drugs are being sold to children will be demolished.
Earlier in his address, the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Youth Development, Hon. Martin Esin commended the Lagos State government for its continuous support to the youth in the State particularly on capacity building, skills development and agenda-building towards a ‘Greater Lagos’.
He noted that what the youths of the country require now is skills development, opportunities and support from the government which Lagos State is taking a lead in, as the state has done many interventions through various programmes including the timely payment of allowances and provision of meals for Corps members, among others.
He urged the State Government to sustain it, saying “We know that the youth of this country represent over 60 per cent of the population which is why State Governments must equip the youth with good skills and capacity building for a sustainable future”.
Hon. Esin stressed the need to activate a National Council for Youth Development that will serve as a platform through which the Federal Ministry of Youth Development can engage the State Commissioners for youth development, stressing that “We want Commissioners and leadership at the Local Government levels to quickly align with this initiative so that we will be able to get inputs from the state level to the local level”.
According to him, “We at the National Parliament Committee on Youth Development are open to collaborating with State Governments on empowering the youth and creating an enabling environment for them to thrive”.
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