President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led administration through the Federal Ministry of Youth Development is working tirelessly, collaborating with relevant MDAs to curb irregular migration in Nigeria.
The Minister of Youth Development, Comrade Ayodele Olawande stated this during a 2-day Awareness Programme on “The Effects of Irregular Migration of Young people”, organised by the ministry in Katsina, Kastina state.
The minister stated that the ministry has designed various empowerment programmes like the vocational trainings in garment and clothing making, beads making, waste management (waste to wealth creation), digital employability, entrepreneurship and leadership training (DEEL), work experience programme (WEP) and the proposed establishment of Youth House across the 774 local government secretariat nationwide.
He said, “In recent years, we have recorded numerous needless and avoidable deaths of irregular migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe. Additionally, we have witnessed countless incidents of organ harvesting, rape, child labour, kidnapping, and prostitution inflicted upon illegal migrants in desert regions.
“Unfortunately, Africa and the Middle East have reported the highest numbers of illegal migrants trying to leave their continent or country for Europe and America.
In a press statement signed and made available to Blueprint Thursday by the director of information and public relations of the ministry, Omolara Esan, the minister stated that other measures include the re launch of the National Youth Investment Fund, which aims at supporting young entrepreneurs with a budget of ₦110 billion, adding that the initiative will focus on training in agriculture, providing tools such as drones to facilitate farming, and offering start-up grants to trainees.“