20m Youths To Be Connected To Education, Skills Via GenU Nigeria Secretariat

* Shettima assures secretariat’ll fast-track implementation of programmes

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

Vice-President Kashim Shettima on Tuesday formally launched the Office of the Vice-President-Generation Unlimited (OVP-GenU) Secretariat to coordinate the implementation of activities of the programme nationwide.

The GenU Nigeria initiative is a UNICEF-led Public-Private-Youth Partnership (PPYP) programme designed to connect 20 million Nigerian youths to education, skills and livelihood opportunities by 2030.

Speaking during the launch of the secretariat in Abuja, the vice-president, represented by the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia, said the office would accelerate the programme execution and deepen partnership across various agencies of government.

He explained that one of the benefits establishing the secretariat would be the proper alignment of skills to the demands of community, industry and society through a transparent process that will be accessible to all. 

Earlier in his remarks, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, commended stakeholders for the launch of the initiative in Nigeria, stating that its framework aligns with the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme (RHWDP).

While pledging his ministry’s support for the GenU programme, Bagudu noted that the initiative will help accelerate the implementation of the Federal Government programme aimed at stimulating local economies by targeting 8,809 electoral wards across the country.

Also speaking, the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Sa’idu Ahmad, applauded the commitment of development partners and other stakeholders for the introduction of the initiative in Nigeria, noting that the vice-president’s vision has given strategic direction to the assignment of the secretariat. 

She said the Federal Ministry of Education will endorse the GenU programme as a technical guide, particularly the skills census, noting that its output will be integrated into the ministry’s planning for vocational and skills training. 

In her remarks, the UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Wafaa Saeed Abdelatef, thanked the Federal Government for the endorsement of the programme, stating that the hosting of the secretariat in the Office of the Vice-President was a demonstration of commitment by the Nigerian government in the wellbeing of the youths.

She said UNICEF was excited, proud and encouraged at what Nigeria was doing, demonstrating leadership in the continent, particularly in maximizing the impact of all the accelerators for job creation.

The representative pledged UNICEF’s support and commitment for the GenU national secretariat, particularly “in bringing in technical expertise in specific programmes”. 

In separate remarks, the Special Adviser to the President on Job Creation and MSME, Mr Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, and the coordinator of the Secretariat, Rimamskeb Nuhu, outlined the potentials of the programme to reverse the trend of unemployment among Nigeria’s youth population, leveraging existing platforms and programmes being implemented by the Federal Government. 

Adekunle-Johnson, however, assured stakeholders of his support using the network of the Shared Hubs initiative of the National MSME Clinics, to deepen skills acquisition across different sectors.

On his part, Nuhu sought the support of critical stakeholders to succeed in the project, saying: “We require two critical commitments from the ministries represented here today. First, we ask for your full support in the upcoming National Skills Census. This census will populate the NSO, establishing it as the ‘Single Source of Truth’ for skills intelligence under the National Council on Skills. 

“Second, we seek formal representation from your respective ministries within the Secretariat itself. By embedding ministerial focal points within the delivery unit, we will ensure better inter-agency coordination, prevent the duplication of efforts, and guarantee the long-term sustainability of this sovereign system.”