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2024 NYFF Grant Unveiling, Beckons Of Hope For Nigerians Youth-Minister

Published

1 year ago

December 4, 2023

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of Youth Development Dr. Jamila Bio Ibrahim has expressed that the launching of the 2023/24 Nigeria Youth Futures Fund NYFF remains an inspiration for Nigerian youth for a Prosperous Future.

In her keynote address at the official 2024 2024 NYFF Grant Cycle Unveiling on Monday in Abuja, Minister Dr. Ibrahim said the youth are the architects of the nation and there is a need to invest them for prosperity.

NYFF fund grant, which is a collaborative effort spearheaded by LEAP Africa and funded by the MacArthur Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the Luminate Group, where $1.2 million was given to 160 organizations and individuals.

Minister said this announcement represents a significant increase from the previous year’s disbursement of $600,000 to 130 recipients, demonstrating the growing commitment of the stakeholders to youth empowerment.

According to her, Today marks the unveiling of the Nigerian Youth Futures Fund, a visionary and collaborative effort spearheaded by LEAP Africa and generously funded by the MacArthur Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the Luminate Group.

This initiative seamlessly aligns with the core pillars of the Ministry of Youth: Education, Empowerment, and Engagement. It synergizes with existing initiatives such as the Youth Development Bank, the initiative to equip youth with knowledge and skills in critical sectors, and the creation of youth-centric platforms to project the voice of the Nigerian youth.

“Through collaborative efforts, we invest in educational opportunities beyond classrooms learning by doing, experiencing, and leading. We empower our youth with the resources to turn dreams into reality, fostering entrepreneurship, innovation, and sustainable development.

Dr. Ibrahim asserted that the increased funding symbolizes more than just numerical expansion.

“This is a bold move to catalyze a wave of change, encouraging our young citizens to play active roles in shaping the Nigeria we envision,” she said.

The Minister added that this fund serves to bridge the gap between the ambitions of Nigerian youth and the resources needed to make them a reality.

She noted, “We believe in your power to innovate, lead, and drive the progress we all aspire to witness.”

“For us, the NYFF’s significance goes beyond financial support; it is about igniting a national conversation and inspiring collective action toward achieving a future where all Nigerians can thrive. The fund covers key sectors such as good governance, sustainable development & infrastructure and addresses fundamental questions of unity, empathy, and patriotism.

“This fund is not just a financial commitment; it’s a resounding vote of confidence in the leadership capabilities of our youth. It is rooted in the belief that by empowering our youth with the right resources and opportunities, we are shaping the architects of our nation’s medium and long-term developmental plans.”

She urged all beneficiaries of the 2024 Grant Cycle of the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund(NYFF) to maximize the 1.6 million dollars for national development.

In her remark, Deputy Director, of LEAP Africa Kehinde Ayeni, explained that the NYFF is a collaborative initiative aimed at strengthening youth leadership in Nigeria.

She emphasized the fund’s long-term goal.

“The Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF) is a five-year collaborative initiative implemented by LEAP Africa and funded by MacArthur Foundation, and Ford Foundation to strengthen youth leadership in Nigeria.

“For the first year, we saw a lot of progress and growth and aspirations of young Nigerians, who responded to the fund and its purpose.

“Now, we are unveiling two categories out of three, which are the development and individual plan.

“We are giving out 1.2 million dollars over the next 12 months to almost 200 organizations or individuals.”

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ELECTING A POPE: THE BURDEN OF MAKING CHOICES

Published

2 hours ago

May 11, 2025

The Gleamer

By Olubunmi Mayaki

“Habemus papam!” which in the English Language means, “We have a Pope.” was pronounced by Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, a French Catholic prelate, His Eminence, Cardinal Dominique Mamberti from the iconic loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican City on Thursday 8 May 2025 after white smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. Those Latin words proclaimed to a tensed global audience the result of the election of a new Supreme Pontiff after the death of Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Pope Francis) on 21 April 2025 at the age of 88 years.

The Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, Cardinal Robert Prevost (Pope Leo XIV) emerged as primus inter pares (first among equals) from the cardinals after undergoing detailed election rituals, which have been the process of selecting the head of the 2000-year-old Catholic Church for centuries.

A papal conclave, the process by which a new Pope is selected, was held consisting of one hundred and thirty-three (133) College of Cardinals, drawn from different parts of the world converged at St. Peter’s Basilica for a public mass before heading to the Sistine Chapel to cast their votes to elect the 267th Pope. During the mass, part of the choir renditions reminded voters to remember their last day when they would stand before God in judgment to render their stewardship on earth, which is to prevent them from rigging the voting process. At the behest of the senior cardinal deacon, voting formalities were read to the electors, which included- oath-taking- “I call as my witness Christ the Lord, who will be my judge, that my vote is given to the one whom I believe should be elected according to God”. Other processes are banning phones, jamming calls, forbidding speaking or contacting any of the candidates, voting rounds, spiritual pauses etc.

Looking at the voting process, one should be curious about how an election to pick a leader for a religious body could be so systematic and attract such global attention. It is a sharp contrast to elections where political leaders are chosen. Even in the so-called advanced democracies, we have seen electoral flaws and a dearth of political leaders. States are finding it difficult to pick genuine statesmen, giving rise to hegemonic leaders. These political imperia ums are emerging and stoking crises in their domain. Fallouts of elections are no longer favourable due to unpopular candidates forced on citizens.

Africa, as a case study, shows that no matter the rules put in place by the continent’s leaders, our election processes have been fraught with rigging, corruption and waste. In most cases, the leaders who set the rules are the violators of the same process. Governments conspire with electoral bodies to truncate election processes at will. Such political brigandage has destroyed the progress of the continent.

Closing this view, I hope that African leaders will take a cue from the Catholic Church’s election process to reinvigorate and rejig the continent’s faltering political process for the good of its people. Better still; political scholars from the continent can study the Catholic model. The common features of elections in most parts of Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, are riddled with vote rigging, violence, human rights abuse, repression, barbarism, crises, untold hardship, and sometimes, outright war. This is the bane of Africa’s development.

The burden of making good political choices should ordinarily rest on citizens. However, politicians have hijacked this process for selfish reasons. It has given birth to bad leaders. If we fail to get it right, what we see is what we get. That is the story of the world politics!

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