Gov Oyetola of Osun State keen on youth development and emancipation

Osun State Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, has restated the commitment of his administration to fine-tuning the Youth Policy Agenda, in order to guarantee the education, empowerment and emancipation of young people in the state.

Repositioning the youth for societal development will further entrench the wave of development the state is experiencing, the governor adds.

In a keynote address at a virtual meeting themed: "Osun Youth Engagement For Global Action" organised to mark the 2020 International Youth Day, the governor pledged to do more to help young people realise their enormous potential.

"As a government, we are conscious of the fact that our youth are not only our future, but also our present hope.

"We first demonstrated this by including youth in our cabinet. To further demonstrate our commitment to building our youth, we've sustained the O'YES and YESSO programmes," Oyetola said.

Osun State Governor, Gboyega Oyetola. [Twitter/@GboyegaOyetola] Pulse Nigeria

"These programmes are aimed at alleviating poverty as well as improving the economy of the state through the involvement of youth in empowerment activities in different fields such as agriculture, sports, Information Technology, security and fashion designing, among others."

He added that "in order to consolidate on our gains so far, we are putting a policy document together, which we shall soon present to the public for input and adoption. The State of Osun Youth Policy Document is a fallout of the country’s National Policy on Youth.

"However, our own policy dwells on 4E’s, namely Youth Education, Youth Engagement, Youth Empowerment and Youth Entrepreneurship.

"This policy sets out guidelines and provides a framework for all stakeholders to engage, empower and equip the youth to realise their potential and take advantage of the opportunities available to make positive contribution to the well-being of their communities across the state."

According to the governor, "Osun Youth Policy emphasizes greater youth participation and engagement in decision making as well as welfare programmes of the government at state and local levels.

"This policy will ensure sufficient investment by the state through the provision of resources, skilled labour and facilities. I appreciate Osun youth for all your support and goodwill towards our administration. I assure you that we will continue to do our best to justify the faith reposed in us as a government."

Yemi lawal is Sports Commissioner in Osun Yemi lawal is Sports Commissioner in Osun Pulse Nigeria

In his remarks, Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Yemi Lawal, who corroborated the governor's position, said the ministry is open to ideas from various youth organisations in the interest of the state.

"As a government, we will continue to do our best to ensure that the youths of the state are empowered and repositioned for excellence.

"As we do our own, we want the youths to support us because we are open to ideas on how we can address the issues for a greater tomorrow," Lawal said.

Oyetola, 65, succeeded Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as Osun Governor on November 27, 2018.