.

By Chioma Obinna

Undoubtedly, Nigeria is considered as the most populous country in Africa and the envy of many other countries. This human capital is not only a blessing but a huge economic strength, especially if put to productive use.

Like the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Paul Arkwright said Nigeria’s population growth could pose a security risk if it is not checked.

Although, people talk about demographic dividend, the explosive growth in Nigeria’s population might turn out a demographic disaster. No wander the biggest threat for Nigeria is around the demographic is nothing is done.

Apparently, due to the huge human capital, the number of out-of-school children may increase more competition for scarce resources, hunger, poor access to health care and education, and high rate of unemployment.

However, some organisations like Nestle, is converting this demographic dividend into positive use with the establishment of Alliance for Youth Nigeria initiative aimed at helping 250,000 young Nigerians to acquire the necessary skills to thrive in the world of work or create their own enterprise in three years.

Today, the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development have signed on the initiative as a development partner of the Alliance for Youth Nigeria.

 At the inauguration of the Alliance in August 2021, the Country Human Resources Manager, Nestlé Nigeria PLC, Mr. Shakiru Lawal had explained that the huge objective of reaching 250,000 young Nigerians with employability and entrepreneurial skills within 3 years was to address the challenges of youth unemployment in the country.

Speaking during the signing ceremony to mark the formal endorsement of the ministry and its membership of the Alliance, Lawal said Nestle will continue to expand partnerships and collaborations.

“We are assured that we are on the right track to the actualisation of our objectives.”

Lawal who spoke on behalf of the Alliance said: “We are delighted to have the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development on board as a Partner of the Alliance for Youth Nigeria.

On his part, the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare said: “The onboarding of the Ministry as a Partner of the Alliance is significant and timely as Government alone cannot address the huge challenge of youth unemployment. I commend the Alliance for choosing a different and unique path, making investments in the young Nigerians and giving them opportunities to create wealth.

“It is imperative that Nigerian youth equip themselves with the necessary skills to give them an added advantage and enable them to become better positioned for decent work.”

Members of the Alliance for Youth Nigeria include Nestlé Nigeria, Jobberman Nigeria, The Big Bottling Company Limited, the United Nations Global Compact Network Nigeria, UConnect HR Limited and Sterling One Foundation. Partners include the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development who just signed on recently, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund and Activate Success International.

The member and partner organizations of the Alliance for Youth Nigeria, invest in joint and individual projects to give young Nigerians readiness-for-work training, entrepreneurship training, meaningful work experience, internships, and mentoring opportunities, thereby contributing towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 8 – to promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all by 2030.