The director-general of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Joseph Ari, has urged governors of the 19 northern states to prioritise youth development through skills acquisition programmes.

Mr Ari made the call on Tuesday in Dutse during the signing of a memorandum of understanding on youth empowerment training with the Jigawa government.

According to Mr Ari, the ITF and Northern Governors’ Forum (NGF) must partner on youth training programmes to make them self-reliant and check restiveness and social vices in the region.

He, therefore, urged Governor Umar Namadi to champion the campaign at the forum.

“On my way here, the NNDC group managing director called me on how the NGF will come in so that we can take away poverty in northern states. This is glaring us in the face, and if nothing is done, we will be sitting on a time bomb. So, your Excellency, at your meeting (NGF), we appeal to you to see how we can come together to rescue the situation,” stated the ITF chief.

Mr Namadi promised to be the ITF’s ambassador at the NGF, adding that “it is high time that governors realised the role of the fund in dealing with social problems.”

Mr Namadi, who identified youth unemployment as one of his major problems, added that it was the government’s responsibility to take care of the youth.

“I think it is high time we as governors realised the importance of ITF in terms of dealing with social problems in Nigeria. And of the major problems I faced during my campaign was the number of youths that always came out to welcome us wherever we went,” said the Jigawa governor. 

Mr Namadi added, “It gave me a lot of concern and sometimes trauma because these guys (youths), we must take care of them, and if we don’t do so then like you just said we’re sitting on time bomb. It has come as a responsibility for all of us to take care of our youths.”

(NAN)