Kashim Shettima on Tuesday inaugurated the Office of the Vice-President, Generation Unlimited secretariat.

The initiative is a UNICEF-led Public-Private-Youth Partnership programme designed to connect 20 million youths to education, skills, and livelihood opportunities by 2030.

At the inauguration, Shettima said the secretariat would accelerate the implementation of the programme and deepen partnerships across various government agencies. He explained that the secretariat would enable the programme to align skills with the demands of the community and industry.

This, according to him, will be achieved through a transparent process to make accessibility easy for all.

Budget minister Abubakar Bagudu said that the programme’s framework aligns with the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme.

Mr Bagudu said it would accelerate the implementation of the federal government’s programme to stimulate local economies, targeting 8,809 electoral wards across the country.

Deputy education minister Suwaiba Ahmad said that the vice-president’s vision has given strategic direction to the assignment of the secretariat. She assured that the Federal Ministry of Education would endorse the GenU programme as a technical guide, particularly the skills census.

The minister noted that its output would be integrated into the ministry’s planning for vocational and skills training.

The UNICEF representative in Nigeria, Wafaa Abdelatef, stated that hosting the secretariat in the Office of the Vice-President was a demonstration of Nigeria’s commitment to the well-being of its youths.

Ms Abdelatef said Nigeria was demonstrating leadership on the continent, particularly in maximising the impact of all the accelerators for job creation. She pledged UNICEF’s support for the GenU, particularly “in bringing in technical expertise in specific programmes”.

(NAN)