By Yusuf Ishaku Goje
In Kaduna State, out of every 10 persons, 8 are below 40 years old. Similarly, for every 10 persons, five are below 17 years and 3 are between 15-34 years (KDGHS, 2020).
Evidently, the State has a high children and youth population. This is a huge resources that can either be harnessed with great benefits or wasted with immense socio-economic repercussion.
According to the State’s 2025 third quarter budget implementation report (Jan-Sept), under the programme classification, out of the revised budget allocation of N15.0 billion for youth, about N14.1 billion, a 94% performance, had been spent.
The questions begging for answers are: what strategic documents were used to inform the investment decisions and what is the expected return on the investment made so far? This is considering the fact that out of every 10 person in the State, about 8 are multidimensionally poor (NBS, MPI, 2022) and 6 are either unemployed or under-employed (NBS, 2020).
A stroll through areas like Kawo bridge, Ahmadu Bello way around Cooperative and Sabon Tasha market will convince you that we are sitting on a ticking time-bomb, if the army of angry looking youths are not empowered anytime soon. Not to talk about the increasing rates of phone snatching, house theft, gang clashes among other criminalities.
Addressing this will require an intentional and strategic approach in accelerating the implementation of Kaduna State Demographic Dividend Roadmap (2024), which commits the State to invest in good governance, health and well-being, education and skill development, economic empowerment, and security, equity and justice in order to harness the dividends.
Commendably, the State government has established the Ministry of Youth Development. However, this is just a first step, which requires many more significant steps. The State’s youth policy (2021-2025) which should inform investments in youth development, empowerment and participation is expiring this year. Hence, the need to urgently review, update and ensure alignment with the States Demographic Dividend Roadmap.
Furthermore, the need to establish an multi-sectoral coordination platform under the Office of the Deputy Governor is long overdue and cannot be overemphasized, as prescribed in the Roadmap. Furthermore, each MDA is expected to develop a work-plan and prioritize implementation.
Thankfully, the Ministry of Youth Development, Kaduna State has taken the lead, with support of FCDO-Programme, in developing an implementation plan and monitoring and evaluation framework. Making the State the first in Nigeria to do so and among the very few in Sub-saharan Africa.
However, this is not enough to deliver the expected result, considering the population is fast growing at 3.18%. The Ministry must be empowered and enabled to deliver on its very important mandate. The N500 million allocated to the Ministry in the proposed 2026 budget before the State Assembly is inadequate to deliver any meaningful desired result.
It is equally important to mandate all MDAs implementing youth-related programmes, projects and interventions to immediately synergize, involve and share all relevant data with the Ministry. Currently, the Ministry does not have a comprehensive and centralized data on youth development, empowerment and participation.
Lastly, the State needs to hold a Kaduna Youth Summit to assess progress, generate broad-based, inclusive and pragmatic recommendations to ensure validation of the current youth-related policy priorities, enable tailored investment, identify existing and emerging opportunities and partnerships, and promote participation, transparency and accountability in youth development.
Lets engage, ask the right questions and hold the government accountable.
Goje is an active citizen, civil society member and OGP enthusiast
