The Federal Government has launched an ambitious national skills programme to connect 20 million young Nigerians to jobs, training, and entrepreneurship opportunities by 2030.
Sixty per cent of the participants under the programme will be women.
Vice President Kashim Shettima announced the plan as he assumed chairmanship of the reactivated Board of Generation Unlimited (GenU) Nigeria during its inaugural meeting in Abuja, which coincided with International Youth Day 2025.
In a statement yesterday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications in the Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, VP Shettima said: “With over 60 per cent of our population below the age of 25, we cannot afford to squander this asset. An advantage unrealised is merely potential wasted.
“We must refine it, invest in it, and channel it towards productive destinies.”
The Vice President described Nigeria’s youth as the nation’s “superpower” in a rapidly ageing world.
He warned that the national skills ecosystem faced a “trilemma” of exclusion, disconnection from livelihoods, and inadequate infrastructure for large-scale hands-on training.
“Another isolated training scheme will not deliver us from these constraints. What we need is systemic change — a new architecture built to last,” he stressed,” Shettima said..
At the heart of the initiative is the Digital Access and Livelihoods Initiative (DALI), which will link foundational and work-readiness training directly to guaranteed jobs or enterprise pathways.
The Vice President said all training will align with the National Skills Qualification Framework to ensure Nigerian youths possess globally competitive credentials.
“We owe young Nigerians jobs. We owe them hope. We owe them the future, not just promises, but proof that their country believes in them enough to invest in their success,” he said.
The Vice President sought collaboration among the government, the private sector, and development partners.
Youth Development Minister Ayodele Olawande said the programme would focus on job creation, bridge the skills gap and human capital development.
“Nigerian youths are not limited. We have the talent, creativity, and courage to thrive. What we need is a meaningful and enabling environment,” he said.
The Special Assistant to the President on Strategy and Policy (Workforce Development), Rimamskeb Nuhu, explained that DALI was designed to address foundational skills gaps, livelihood disconnect, and infrastructure deficits, with plans to establish Renewed Hope digital hubs across the country.
Since its launch in 2021, GenU 9JA has empowered over 10 million youths through initiatives, such as the FUCAP Campus Ambassadors Programme with Unilever, Microsoft’s Passport to Earning, Green Rising, and the Girls’ Education and Skills Partnership with the UK’s FCDO.
By Bolaji Ogundele, @TheNation
