As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark this year’s International Youth Day, former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside has called on government at all levels to invest more in youth to guarantee a brighter future.
According to him, the youth, who are the future, must be given pride of place in the overall development of any nation that seeks to progress.
With the theme of this year’s International Youth Day being “Youth Engagement for Global Action,” Peterside said “government and senior citizens should pay adequate attention to youth issues especially education, job creation and moral standards.”
In a statement issued by his media team on Wednesday, Peterside noted: “Education must remain a top priority if we are to make meaningful progress. More investments should be made in the education sector, especially as regards infrastructure, teachers, and curriculum that will turn out better-equipped students and graduates.
“The issue of job creation must also occupy the front burner for various tiers of government as a productive generation of youth is critical to the development of a nation at all times.”
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The former NIMASA boss stressed that the government at various levels should lead the way in making investments on things that will place our youth in a vantage position to compete in a highly competitive society.
Meanwhile, he called on the youth to be more involved in the political power equation, while insisting that only such movement can give them the platform to shape their future.
Peterside noted that the youth have contributed immensely to the growth and development of Nigeria but, that more needed to be done to achieve greater success.
“Nobody will give you power, I encourage the youth to stand up and fight for political power to enable them to be part of decision-making. The youth should engage their governments at all levels and seek greater participation in governance,” he said.
Perterside commended the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration for initiating programmes and policies aimed at empowering the youth especially in the area of education, agriculture, small and medium enterprises, technology, among others.
International Youth Day is celebrated on August 12 every year. The theme for this year, “Youth Engagement for Global Action” seeks to highlight the ways in which the engagement of young people at the local, national and global levels is enriching national and multilateral institutions and processes, as well as draw lessons on how their representation and engagement in formal institutional politics can be significantly enhanced.
