A Year of Impact: Ayodele Olawande and renewal of youth development in Nigeria By Abidex Femi

A YEAR OF IMPACT: AYODELE OLAWANDE AND  RENEWAL OF YOUTH DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA 

By Abidex Femi

When you empower the youth, you empower the future of a nation.”  These words, often echoed in policy discussions, find real meaning in the work of Hon. Ayodele Olawande, Nigeria’s Minister of Youth Development. In a country where young people make up more than half of the population, leadership that speaks directly to their hopes and challenges is not just desirable, it is essential.

Since assuming office on October 16, 2023, and later elevated to the substantive Minister of Youth Development by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu a year later, Olawande has distinguished himself as a minister who translates promises into action.

His approach to youth engagement, empowerment, and protection has not only redefined the mandate of his ministry but also rekindled a sense of belonging among millions of young Nigerians.

One of the most striking features of his leadership has been his consistent closeness to the youth themselves. Rather than governing from behind a desk, Olawande embarked on engagement tours across the country, meeting young Nigerians in their own spaces and listening to their stories, challenges, and dreams. His visits to Delta and Cross River States directly birthed digital job training programs tailored to the aspirations voiced by the young people he met. His presence in Borno, at Maimalari Barracks where he met with wounded young soldiers, and in internally displaced persons’ camps where he distributed learning materials, revealed a minister who embodies empathy and demonstrates action beyond the confines of officialdom. For him, no Nigerian youth is invisible, whether they are in bustling cities, rural villages, or areas scarred by conflict.

Economic empowerment has stood as a cornerstone of his work. Understanding that entrepreneurship remains the backbone of Nigeria’s youthful economy, he spearheaded the expansion of the Nigerian Youth Investment Fund from seventy-five billion to one hundred and ten billion naira, giving young entrepreneurs better access to finance and opportunities. Programs like the Corpreneur Support Scheme provide funding for NYSC members trained in the Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development program, ensuring that service year becomes a springboard into self-reliance. At the grassroots, the Grassroots Youth Entrepreneurship Support Scheme has supported small-scale businesses that sustain local communities, affirming his vision that youth empowerment must not be confined to urban centers alone but spread across every part of the country.

In a society where the youth often feel vulnerable to harassment and profiling by security agencies, Olawande took the bold step of creating the Young and Secure Initiative in collaboration with the Ministry of Police Affairs. This initiative, alongside the Nigerian Youth Helpdesk, offers young Nigerians a direct platform to report cases of harassment and ensures swift intervention, thereby protecting their dignity and rebuilding trust between youth and law enforcement. His emphasis on protection as a pillar of development reflects his belief that the potential of young people can only flourish in an environment where they feel safe and respected.

At the heart of his vision is the future of work, and here his imprint has been equally profound. Through the Nigerian Youth Academy, popularly known as NIYA, he launched the “One Youth, Two Skills” campaign, which has already drawn over eighty thousand sign-ups even before its official unveiling. This e-learning platform is equipping millions of young Nigerians with vocational and digital skills designed to meet the demands of both local and global markets. His partnership with the National Information Technology Development Agency birthed the DL4ALL program, a digital literacy initiative targeting thirty million Nigerians, making it one of the most ambitious youth digital empowerment programs in the country’s history.

Complementing this is his collaboration with the National Data Protection Commission which is not only training but also creating five thousand jobs in the fast-growing field of data protection.

Olawande’s innovations stretch beyond the digital economy. By partnering with the Presidential Initiative on CNG, he facilitated the distribution of two thousand CNG-powered tricycles to young people in the transportation sector. This intervention addresses two needs at once: empowering youths with sustainable livelihoods and advancing the nation’s commitment to greener, cleaner transportation. 

Similarly, the soon-to-be-launched nationwide enrollment portal for young farmers demonstrates his recognition that agriculture must remain central to Nigeria’s growth and youth employment.

Infrastructure for youth development has also been elevated under his stewardship. The Youth House Initiative, already approved by President Tinubu, envisions Youth Houses in Abuja, Youth Centers in all states, and Green Houses in all seven hundred and seventy-four local government areas of the federation. These are not mere structures but hubs of opportunity, designed to provide resources, training, and support at the grassroots level. His drive to institutionalize youth involvement in governance also led to the creation of the National Youth Conference, a platform where young Nigerians can directly engage government, propose solutions, and shape the policies that affect their lives.

In education and career development, Olawande has reformed the NYSC posting process to ensure corps members are placed in organizations relevant to their fields of study, transforming the service year into a period of genuine skill acquisition and career readiness. Alongside this, the ministry is working to ease the financial burden on students through the implementation of loans and stipends, ensuring that education becomes more accessible and less stressful for young Nigerians.

“All of these achievements are driven by a clear and simple philosophy which Olawande himself has often articulated: Support, Empower, and Protect the youth. This SEP approach runs through every initiative and reform, from financial inclusion and employment opportunities to protection from harassment and the creation of safe spaces where young people can thrive. It is a strategy that recognizes youth not as passive recipients of charity but as active partners in national development.““Hon. Ayodele Olawande’s first year in office has redefined what it means to be a Minister of Youth Development.

He has shown through action that Nigerian youth deserve more than promises; they deserve structures that empower their dreams, systems that protect their dignity, and platforms that amplify their voices. In his story lies an example of governance that is responsive, innovative, and inclusive. For the millions of young Nigerians who now feel a sense of belonging, his leadership is not just a chapter in public service but the dawn of a new narrative in which the youth are truly at the center of national development.