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FG Calls For Collaboration With UNDP On Youth Empowerment

Published

12 months ago

March 23, 2024

Joel Ajayi

The federal government has called for the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to implement the strategic plans of the Ministry of youth development which are aimed at providing young Nigerians with the necessary skills, mentorship, conducive environment and access to resources that will empower them to become active contributors to the country’s economy.

Dr. Jamila Bio Ibrahim, the Minister of Youth Development, made this call during a meeting with the Resident Representative of the UNDP, Ms. Elsie Attafuah, which took place at the Honourable Minister’s conference room in Abuja.

While shedding light on the strategic areas of the ministry’s agenda. Dr. Bio-Ibrahim said, *”Our strategic ambition is to transform and reposition the Nigerian youth as catalysts for economic development.

Young people must be an integral part of this process. We have other sub-ambitions, the first being a reduction in the youth unemployment rate, followed by an increase in youth possessing skills that are in line with global demand, and an increase in youth participation in social and economic development”*

She further said, *“Our core tactical initiatives are focused on four pillars: Governance, Jobs and Skills Innovation, Culture and Behavioral Change, and Human Capital Development. These pillars aim to guide policy advocacy and development, improve coordination across stakeholders, and provide multi-agency youth programs and resources”

She emphasized the determination of her ministry to establish communication governance frameworks, implement youth-embedded public and private sector mentorship programs, create multi-sector job off-taker platforms for youth employment, enhance NYSC reforms and establish youth villages and innovation centers.
The Minister also disclosed plans to revitalize the national youth investment fund, launch the Young Leaders Institute, implement social, behavioral, and cultural change programs aimed at tackling youth-related issues such as climate change, gender, mental health, drug, and substance abuse.
The Minister further explained that the initiative includes provision of access to business literacy, financial management, and entrepreneurship training to meet the global market demand.
As part of efforts to actualise these initiatives, she disclosed plans to create more professional departments in the ministry *”We are currently seeking approval to create additional professional departments. However, the one that is particularly important to us is the Youth Well-being Department. It is crucial to create such a department because when young people have good mental health, they are more likely to be productive. Therefore, our goal is to prioritize the well-being of our youth”,* she said.

She further said, *“We are seeking approval to restart the Nigeria Investment Fund. If approved, it will enable us to employ the cluster approach with a view to enhancing youth development and empowerment. This, in turn, will lead to tangible sustainable impact on a great scale, and benefit our economy”.*

Dr. Bio-Ibrahim maintained that one of the Ministry’s main goals is to increase the representation of young people in politics and governance at all levels by seeking the Council’s approval for 30 percent youth quota.

In his welcome remark, Dr. Donuma Umar Ahmed, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, expressed his sincere appreciation for the meeting with UNDP Resident Representative.
He posited that the meeting was aimed to bring about positive change in the lives of young people in Nigeria. He urged the participants to be proactive in their contribution.

Ms. Elsie Attafuah, the Resident Representative of UNDP, gave the assurance that her organisation would provide support for the innitiatives.

She lamented that the African continent is facing a daunting challenge as young people continue to struggle to find jobs, leading to frustration and the growing trend of going abroad to seek jobs. She pointed out that it was high time to delve deeper into the root causes of the problem and take a more realistic approach towards youth empowerment and job creation.

“We must create more opportunities and find jobs for our people, as merely providing them with starter packs or training won’t solve it. We need to identify the obstacles that hold us back and tackle them head-on. Let’s work together to eradicate this problem and create a brighter future for our youth and our continent.” She said.

“In the four pillars, we will encourage everyone to think outside the box and explore innovative practices that align with the ever-changing world,”* she added. Ms. Attafuah expressed her eagerness to collaborate with the Ministry in the priority areas outlined by the Minister.

She stressed the importance of ensuring that the design, implementation, and operationalization are done properly.

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Business

Tax Reform Bills: The Verdict of Nigerians

Published

2 weeks ago

March 6, 2025

The Gleamer

Ismaila Ahmad Abdullahi Ph.D

The public hearings conducted recently by the two Chambers of the National Assembly have elicited positive responses from a broad spectrum of Nigerians, cutting across regional interest groups, government agencies, civil society groups, concerned individuals, the academia, and Labour Unions, among diverse others. Contrary to a few dissensions hitherto expressed in the media, almost all the stakeholders who spoke during the week-long sessions were unanimous in their declaration that the hallowed Chambers should pass the tax reform bills after a clean-up of the grey areas.

The public hearings were auspicious for all Nigerians desirous of economic growth and fiscal responsibility. They were also a watershed moment for the Federal Inland Revenue Service, which had been upbeat about the tax reforms. Indeed, the public hearings had rekindled hope in the tenets of democracy that guarantee freedom of expression and equitable space for cross-fertilisation of ideas. Without gainsaying the fact, the tax reform bills have been unarguably about the most thought-provoking issues in Nigeria today, drawing variegated perspectives and commentaries from even unlikely quarters such as the faith-based leaders, student bodies, and trade unions, which speaks much about the importance of the bills.

In the build-up to the public hearings, not many people believed that the bills would make it to the second reading, much less the public hearings. Even the Northern stakeholders who seemed unlikely to support the passage of the bills have softened their stance and have given valuable suggestions that would enrich the substance of the bills. The Arewa Consultative Forum came to the public hearings well-prepared with a printed booklet that addressed their concerns. It concluded with an advisory that the bills should be “Well planned, properly communicated, strategically implemented and ample dialogue and political consensus allowed for the reforms to be accepted.”

The concerns of ACF ranged from the composition of the proposed Nigeria Revenue Service Board as contained in Part 111, Section 7 of the bill, the unlimited Presidential power to exempt/wave tax payment as proposed in Section 75(1) of the bill, the family income or inheritance tax as contained in Part 1, Section 4(3) of the bill, to the issues around development levy and VAT. On the development levy, the ACF stated that unless the Federal Government is considering budgetary funding for TETFUND, NASENI and NITDA, it does not see the “wisdom behind the plan to replace (them) with NELFUND”.

The position of the North was equally reinforced by the Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria, Northern Elders Forum, Kano State Government, Professor Auwalu Yadudu, and the FCT Imams. Like the ACF, these stakeholders lent their respective voices to the Section on the Inheritance Tax in Part 1 of the bill and the use of the term ‘ecclesiastical’, which, in their views, undermines certain religious rights and beliefs. The Kano State Government, represented by Mahmud Sagagi, affirmed that “we support tax modernisation” but cautioned that “we must ensure that this process does not come at the expense of states’ constitutional rights and economic stability”. Professor Auwalu Yadudu, a constitutional law professor, drew attention to the use of the ‘supremacy clause’ and cautioned that the repeated use of “notwithstanding” in the bills would undermine the supremacy of the Nigerian constitution if passed as such.

Other stakeholders that made contributions at the sessions included the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Nigeria Customs Service, and a host of others. While most of their concerns bordered on technical issues requiring fine-tuning, they were unanimous in their support for the bills. They aligned with the position of the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, Ph.D. and the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, which is that the extant tax laws and fiscal regulations are obsolete necessitating reforms aimed at creating a fair and equitable tax and fiscal space to grow Nigeria’s economy.

In one of the sessions, Dr Zaach Adedeji expounded on the criss-cross of trade activities in the Free Trade Zone whereby companies misuse tax waivers as exporters to sell their goods or services in the Customs Area at an amount usually less than the price the operators in the Customs Area who pay VAT and other taxes sell theirs thereby disrupting business transactions. This way, the operators in the Free Trade Zone shortchange the government in paying their due taxes by circumventing extant regulations, which are inimical to the economy’s growth.

Overall, the presentations were forthright, foresighted, and helpful in elucidating the issues contained in the bills. According to the statistics read out at the end of the hearings at the Senate, 75 stakeholders were invited, 65 made submissions, and 61 made presentations. At the House of Representatives 53 stakeholders made presentations. By all means, this is a fair representation. Given the presentations, it is evident that the National Assembly has gathered enough materials to guide its deliberations on the bills. As we look forward to the passage of the bills, we commend the leadership of the National Assembly for their unwavering commitment to making the bills see the light of the day.

Abdullahi is the Director of the Communications and Liaison Department, FIRS.

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