9th February, 2017
Deputy Governor of the state, Dr. Oluranti Adebule, who launched the new project on Tuesday in Ikeja, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria said the youths were critical in the development of the state and that providing such platform would help them to develop leadership traits.
She pleaded with the youths to take advantage of the programme in order to get the best.
Commissioner for Youth and Social Development, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf said the academy would run for five days annually and is expected to train 500 youths across five youth centres in the state in leadership skills.
She said the newly inaugurated IYA would produce youth ambassadors as from this year, while listing the curriculum of the academy to include team building, creative thinking skills, goal setting, and employability skills.
Akinbile-Yusuf said 10 outstanding youths from each centre would proceed to the IYA camp, where they would be trained on personal development.
The commissioner stated that outstanding participant would be named the Lagos State Youth Ambassador for 2017.
“The mission is to inculcate in the youth the virtues of citizenship, leadership and volunteerism for the development of their personality, society, state and the nation. It is open to youths between the ages of 16 and 24 with a minimum educational qualification of Senior School Certificate Examination.
“This project will be an annual event. The inaugural leadership training is being packaged as part of activities to celebrate Lagos at 50. Forms for the training are free and application will begin tomorrow (Wednesday),’’ she said.
Permanent Secretary, Youth and Social Development, Hakeem Muri-Okunola said the underlying philosophy behind the creation of the programme in the youth sector was based on a firm belief that dividends from such investment could be quantifiable.
“This is because the young people represent the potentials that must be groomed and harnessed for the overall development of our dear State, Lagos and the country, Nigeria at large. The Ibile Youth Academy is a platform designed to ignite young people’s personal development and transformation required for bright future,” he said.
According to him, the academy would serve as a training platform for the young participants to have greater understanding of leaders’ responsibility, improve their abilities to communicate with their peers and adult and improve their ability to understand, contribute to the state’s vision and policies; harness the power of positive thinking which would create influence in themselves to achieve greatness in every level and know how to lead and influence others.