Empower youths to boost devt, UNICEF tells govt

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Country Representative in Nigeria, Cristian Munduate, has stressed the need for youths in the country to take advantage of digital technology to achieve sustainable development.

Speaking on the 2024 International Youth Day theme, ‘From Clicks to Progress: Youth Digital Pathways for Sustainable Development,’ Munduate stated that youth would play a significant role in navigating and shaping the dynamic world.

According to the UNICEF chief, stakeholders and policymakers must focus efforts on prioritising support for youths.

Munduate disclosed that UNICEF launched the Generation Unlimited (GenU) initiative in 2018, a global initiative designed to support individuals between 10 and 24 years old to enhance their skills, broaden learning opportunities, and prepare them for challenges.

She maintained that the initiative targets 20 million youths, while about 6.2 million have been engaged on the platform, creating opportunities online, adding that the youth stand at the forefront of the digital revolution, using technology to drive progress, create opportunities, and build a more inclusive and sustainable world.

SIMILARLY, Nigerian youths have been told to embrace digital technologies, particularly Artificial Intelligence (AI), as a means of driving sustainable development and personal advancement.

This call was made, yesterday, during a one-day training programme on Generative AI, organised by the Karim Adeyemi Foundation, in partnership with SkillNG, in Ibadan to mark International Youth Day 2024.

The training, which brought together 50 young professionals from diverse fields, was designed to improve workplace productivity through practical applications of Generative AI.

In his remarks, the President of Karim Adeyemi Foundation, Abiodun Adeyemi, underscored the importance of technology proficiency in the digital age.

He emphasised that Nigerian youths must be proactive in leveraging technology to foster positive societal change.

Co-founder of SkillNG, Ibrahim Oredola, noted that the theme reflected the immense potential that digital innovation held for achieving sustainable development.