Nigeria: Turn Ideas Into Practical Solutions, FG Tells Youths

What the report says

Nigeria’s Federal Government has urged young people to move beyond online and offline discussions and focus on practical responses to the challenges they face. The message was delivered by Youth Development Minister Ayodele Olawande at the opening of the National Youth Confab 2026, held at the National Counter Terrorist Centre Auditorium in Abuja over the weekend, according to Daily Trust via AllAfrica.

Olawande said the confab should serve as more than a standard conference, describing it as a space for young Nigerians to share ideas, weigh opportunities and constraints, and help shape policies and programmes that affect them. He pointed to employment, skills development, access to finance, education, digital inclusion, entrepreneurship, peace and security as key pressure points for youths, and asked delegates to produce realistic recommendations, partnerships and measurable actions.

The minister said young people are a major national asset, citing their roles in entrepreneurship, technology, the creative economy, civic participation, innovation and community development. Permanent Secretary Maryam Keshinro similarly said the gathering could help influence policy on leadership, governance, jobs, education, digital skills, peacebuilding and national unity.

Other officials echoed the call for inclusion. NYSC Director-General Brigadier-General Olakunle Nafiu said youth participation in decision-making is important for national development, while NITDA Director-General Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi said technology and artificial intelligence would be used to collect and organize the ideas raised at the confab to help inform future policy.