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The National President of Junior Chamber International, Nigeria, Sandra Efemuaye on Friday described the planned national youth conference as announced by President Bola Tinubu during his October 1 Independence speech as an encouraging step towards carrying along young people in the task of nation-building.
Efemuaye said that though, the youth confab may not necessarily solve all the issues fuelling youth confrontation with the government or stagnating their growth, a platform would have been provided to hear the youth out and see how they could better be integrated and supported to build a more virile and prosperous nation.
She disclosed this at a briefing held on the sidelines of the ongoing JCI National Convention at Park Inn, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
The national convention which is attracting over 1000 youth delegates has as its theme “Inspiring the Future”.
Efemuaye while answering questions from the journalists said “The Youth Confab is a wonderful development, it is a welcome development for us in JCI that has been interacting with the youth globally for over a century and in Nigeria for over 50 years.
“We are already exchanging correspondence with the Ministry of Youths and Sports to see how we can all collaborate to make life better for our youths.
“I am particularly commending the President for this initiative. It is a right step towards the right direction because statistics have shown that over 45 per cent of the country’s population is make up of the youth and the youth are the future of any nation.
“So if the youth are given better attention, better skills and adequately supported, we won’t just have a better nation but a better society as well.
“The confab may not provide all the solutions to our problems but we would have started making appreciable steps towards fruitful engagement to further make the country great while carrying the youth along.”
She described JCI has a global youth organisation that has been in existence globally for over 100 years and 50 years in Nigeria and its membership is for youths aged between 18 to 40.
Efemuaye said that in the last one year, the organisation has been able to provide support and mentorship for many youths all of which are directed towards making them outstanding and contributing meaningfully to building an economically vibrant and peaceful nation.
The International President of JCI, Mr Kaven Kumaravel said that he was in the country to push for group’s campaign on human duties.
Kumaravel said that concentration and emphasis have always been on human rights but that it is also essential to begin to point out human duties so that people can live responsibly and take responsibility for their actions.
One of the keynote speakers at the conference, the Ogun State Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mr Olaolu Olabimtan appreciated the youth for organising such a national event to acquire requisite leadership skills.
Olabimtan said that the theme of the youth programme “Inspiring The Future” shows that the youth are thinking and should therefore remain positive while also embracing the right values to see them through the challenging time.
He said “My message to the youth is to stay back and help in resolving the issue. After all, we only have Nigeria. The youth should be ready to stand despite the bad times. They should stay positive and resilient. For every bad time, there is an opportunity for growth and new innovation.
“They should rather think through, survey for the opportunity and move up the ladder. There is money and progress to be made in the country. I would rather advocate that our youth should stay positive and resilient. They should embrace right values and take charge of their life and we will all be better for it.”
