A civil society organisation, Nigeria Youths Future Fund, has urged young people to actively participate in decision-making and governance to accelerate the nation’s growth and development.

The country director of the organisation, Onyeche Agbiti-Douglas, made the call at an Open Government Participation (OGP) workshop on Friday in Lokoja.

The workshop, organised by the organisation’s North-Central zone, was themed “Strengthening Youth Participation in the OGP Process in Nigeria.”

Ms Agbiti-Douglas emphasised the importance of the initiative in holding government accountable and leveraging the knowledge of older generations to move the nation forward.

She noted that youths constituted between 60 and 70 per cent of Nigeria’s population, which presented a huge opportunity for active participation in politics and decision-making.

According to her, collaboration remains key to achieving success and development.

She stressed that the workshop’s focus on young Nigerians would ensure their voices were heard in the decision-making process.

“By engaging young people in OGP, our organisation aims to ensure that their voices are heard and their needs addressed.

“This would ultimately contribute to the country’s growth and development,” she said.

The executive director of the Youth Development and Empowerment Initiative, Okutepa Aminu-Useni, said the workshop would inspire participants to be passionate about their society and to speak out for positive change.

“It also highlighted the importance of the National Action Plan (NAP), an OGP document that outlines government commitments to transparency, extractive sector openness, anti-corruption and other areas that benefit citizens,” he said.

Tijani Abdulkareem, executive director of the Socio-Economic Research and Development Centre (SEDEC), said the workshop was a zonal initiative aimed at engaging young people in developing the NAP.

Zainab Aliyu, a participant, described the workshop as a catalyst for empowerment and an avenue for advocating girls’ education and rights.

She commended the organisers for sensitising youths on the importance of participating in governance.

(NAN)