The Federal Government has urged Nigerian youths to engage in creativity and take advantage of government’s empowerment programmes rather than travel out for greener pastures.
Mrs Memunat Idu-Lah, Director, International Cultural Relations, Ministry of Information and Culture, gave the advice when she spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.
“Our youths should look inward and be creative, everybody has one creativity or the other being born, everybody has something is born to do in this world.
“I think we should discourage the youths from going out, if they need support, there are some government’s agencies saddled with the responsibility of providing many empowerment programmes.
“These agencies that can support youths to learn something and be productive rather than looking at running out,” she said.
Idu-Lah added: “We should not think of going out, we should try to look inward and believe in government’s programmes.
“The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN) is there and so many programmes that the government has put in place to help the youth to encourage them.”
The director, who described human trafficking as illegal and modern day slavery, urged youths to stay in the country to support in boosting the nation’s economy.
“The people coming to take them will not tell them the truth, it is only when the children are out of the village that they are with their traffickers alone, that’s when sometimes it is too late they can’t go back.
“So, they have to know that everything is not money, the children can stay back in Nigeria, even help Nigeria’s economy.
“Because when they use their hands to do something creative, they can add to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the nation, instead of even losing our good hands in the name of trafficking and they die in the process,” she said.
Idu-Lah added: “Both ways, we are trying to help the economy and we are also trying to save lives that are going to be lost.
“We are hearing cases of organ trafficking, organ sales, they kill people in the process and sell their organs, all sort of things are going on.
“We are going to use the commemoration of this year’s World Slavery and its Abolition Day to create awareness on the effects of these vices.”
NAN reports that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has declared every Aug. 23 as World Slavery and its Abolition Day and Nigeria is preparing towards joining UNESCO member countries to commemorate the day in 2021.(NAN)
