Vice President Kashim Shettima says a Presidential Initiative for Youth Enterprise Clusters worth N110 billion is in the offing.
This, he noted, is in addition to a Youth Data Bank and a National Youth Development Bank, as well as the already existing N110 billion Youth Investment Fund.
Shettima who spoke on Thursday during the commemoration of the 2024 World Population Day at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, says the present dispensation has fulfilled the 30% quota for youth inclusion in governance across all tiers of government.
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The Vice President pointed out that if the government at all levels has access to inclusive data sources, its policy actions and investments will align with the needs of the citizens.
Shettima also stressed the need for improved data collection, analysis and deployment of technology to generate more comprehensive and inclusive evidence to guide government decisions, investment choices, and pathway to development.
According to him, deploying the best technology to strengthen data systems and institutions, upgrading human resources and capacities, and promoting partnerships that will facilitate generating and using inclusive data will guarantee a resilient and equitable future for all Nigerians.
He said in spite of the fact that the last census was conducted about 18 years ago, Nigeria has never relegated the importance of data, noting that the occasion of the World Population Day underscores the need for more commitment to improving data collection, analysis, and deployment of modern technology.
Noting that inclusive data had been one of the major challenges to governance in Nigeria for decades, the Vice President reassured however that with President Bola Tinubu in the saddle, Nigerians now have a leader who “is not only a man of numbers, as a first-rate accountant, but also recognises” them as critical components in the country’s development drive.
He listed the needs to include provision of decent jobs that pay sustainable incomes to the working-age population, creation of affordable and equitable access to quality healthcare services at all levels, and quality education for all.
Minister of Youth Development, Jamila Bio-Ibrahim, commended the commitment of partners as evidenced in their participation at the event, urging them to leverage scientific evidence to resolve the myriads of challenges confronting the various segments of the world’s population.
She also disclosed plans by the Federal Government to build a youth data bank that will be dedicated to harnessing the potentials of young people for national development regardless of their location and status.
Chairman of the National Population Commission NPoC, Nasir Isa Kwarra, noted the important role of periodic censuses in generating administrative data for inclusive planning and sustainable development.
He pointed out that Nigeria’s last census was conducted nearly two decades ago, and stressed the urgent need for updated, credible, and comprehensive data to inform policy decisions and interventions.
Earlier, United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, called for renewed commitment and investment to turn the International Conference on Population and Development, ICPD Programme of Action promises into reality.
Guterres, who was represented by the Director of the UN Information Centre for Nigeria, Ronald David Kayanja, stressed the critical role of women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights in sustainable development.
He noted progress made since the programme’s adoption, including increased access to modern contraception and a 34% reduction in maternal deaths since 2000.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
