PROTOCOL:
It is with great pleasure and deep sense of responsibility that I address you today on the occasion of your 10th Anniversary Celebration. I commend the leadership and members of the Society for the Welfare of Unemployed Youths of Nigeria (SWUYN) for a decade of sustained advocacy, resilience, and commitment to youth empowerment.
2. Ten years is not merely a milestone in time, it represents dedication, perseverance, and impact. It reflects a journey from concern to action, from advocacy to empowerment, and from challenge to opportunity.
3. Youth unemployment remains one of the most pressing socio-economic challenges of our time. However, it is also one of our greatest opportunities. Nigeria is blessed with a vibrant, energetic, creative, and resilient youth population. When properly equipped with skills, opportunities, and enabling policies, our youths become drivers of innovation, productivity and national transformation.
4. The theme of this celebration- “FROM UNEMPLOYMENT TO EMPOWERMENT –TEN YEARS OF YOUTH POWER TRANSFORMING NATIONS” is timely and profound. It captures the essential transition we must continuously pursue; moving our young people from job seekers to job creators, from vulnerability to productivity, and from dependency to leadership.
5. The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment remains firmly committed to policies and programmes that promote decent work, enhance employability, and stimulate enterprise development. Our focus includes:
• Strengthening skills acquisition and vocational training;
• Promoting entrepreneurship and small business growth;
• Fostering public-private partnership for employment expansion;
• Supporting labour market reforms that encourage job creation;
• Expanding opportunities within emerging sectors such as technology, agriculture, green economy, and the creative industry.
6. Let me use this opportunity to highlight some Government efforts to youth empowerment:a. Youth Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Program (YEEP). This is an initiative of the Federal Government that has created thousands of job opportunities. This program achieved the following:
• Skills Development: Provided both digital skills and training to enhance employability.• Mentorship: Partnership with organizations like Nestle, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Government Officials to provide guidance and support for trained youths.
• Job Creation: Over ten thousand youths (10,000) placed in jobs through the National Electronic Labour Exchange (NELEX), and other platforms.
• Financial Grants:
a. Over 50 million naira disbursed in grants and equipment to youths.
b. The Federal Government also through the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment established vocational training centres and programs to equip youths with market relevant skills. Through the NELEX platform of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, in collaboration with private sector partnership, Government created jobs in key sectors like Agriculture, Technology and Manufacturing. Through these platforms, many qualified youths have been job matched and placed.
c. Also in line with the support of the Government’s interest in the growth and development of its youths, the Federal Government of Nigeria is implementing several key youth’s empowerment programs to boost skills, employment and entrepreneurship. These initiatives include the Nigerian Youth Academy (NIYA) (digital skill), Skill -Up Artisan Programme (SUPA) (technical training), National Youth Talent Programme (NATEP) and Nigeria Jubilee Fellows Programme (NJFP).
7. It is worthy to note that the Federal Government over the past decades have created part ways for young people to contribute to the Nations growth. We are working to ensure that employment policies are inclusive, forward-looking, and responsive to the realities of a rapid evolving global economy.
Government cannot do this alone .Sustainable employment generation requires collaboration between:
• Civil Society Organizations
• Private Sector Partners
• Educational Institutions
• Development Agencies
• And Youth-led Organizations such as yours.
8. The Society for the Welfare of Unemployed Youth of Nigeria (SWUYN) has demonstrated that organized advocacy, mentorship, and community-based interventions can significantly complement government efforts.
Your Slogan-“TURNING OPPORTUITIES INTO IMPACT-WHEN YOUTH WORK, NATIONS WIN’’- captures a fundamental truth: unemployment is not merely about income; it is about dignity, stability, innovation, and national prosperity.
As we celebrate ten (10) years of impact, let us commit to the next decade with renewed energy and strategic focus.
The future demands:
• Digital readiness and technological skills;
• Entrepreneurial thinking from an early age;• Stronger linkages between education and industry;
• Ethical leadership and accountability;
• A culture of productivity and excellence.
9. To our young people present here today, I say this: the future belongs to you, but it will require preparation, resilience, discipline, and continuous learning. Government will continue to create enabling frameworks, but individual commitment and innovation remain indispensable.
10. In conclusion, I congratulate the Society for the Welfare of Unemployed Youth of Nigeria on this remarkable 10-year journey. May this anniversary not only celebrate the past but ignite a stronger movement toward empowerment, productivity, and national development.
Let us work together to build a Nigeria where every willing and able youth has access to meaningful employment, where talent is nurtured and where opportunity is transformed into measurable impact.
When Youths work, indeed, nations win.
Thank you.
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
