UNDP/Anambra Pact Presents Global Empowerment Opportunities to Youths*

UNDP/Anambra Pact Presents Global Empowerment Opportunities to Youths

Youths of Anambra State now have the opportunity of benefiting from global empowerment initiatives of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
This comes as a result of a recent pact between Anambra State government and the United Nations (UN) agency.
A new partnership between Anambra State's Ministry of 
Youth Development and UNDP focuses on empowering creative and innovative youths with ideas that offer solutions to society's challenges.
Through the collaboration with UNDP, through which the Ministry seeks to "consolidate
modalities on massive
empowerment for Anambra 
youths", young people in the south east Nigerian state will also reap from programs the UN agency organises collaboratively with other international bodies such as the on-going 'Young Africa Innovates' which Mastercard Foundation is organising in partnership with UNDP. The novel project will select youths with creative and innovative ideas on, entrepreneurship, social development and leadership from Anambra and across Africa; train them in a booth camp and fund them.
 On Wednesday (8th May 2024) during a meeting
between UNDP delegation and the Ministry of 
Youth Development of Anambra State, the program was one of the main issues of discourse.
The UNDP Team led by Mrs. Joyce Oburu, during the
visit to Anambra State's Commissioner for Youth
Development,
Patrick Agha Mba hailed the state for her keenness on youth empowerment and pro-youth governance. Main goal of the visit was to consolidate on the parties'
previous resolutions for the empowerment of the youths of Anambra State through an effective and 
sustainable partnership. The two 
parties had earlier resolved on the 
need for the partnership and identified 
the similarities in their youth 
development programs.
Receiving the UNDP delegation, 
Mr. Agha Mba 
expressed his delight with the zeal of
UNDP to see Anambra Youths benefit 
from its programs and 
thanked the UN body for the gesture. He poured his major encomium on the governor 
of Anambra State Prof. Charles 
Chukwuma Soludo for providing enabling vent for youth development as well as for good
working environment for UNDP to 
plan and implement its laudable 
programs in Anambra.

In the words of the commissioner, this is the "best time for such partnership"
based on "the level of work being 
done by Mr. Governor in the area of 
youth enterprise development."
He cited several youth development 
programs the state has recorded as a result of the governor's strong support for innovation, entrepreneurship and solution-oriented ides. Among them are the '1 Youth 2 Skills Solution' campaign; the
'Solution Job-Kikstart'
initiative, Solution Innovation District 
(SID) and Solution Sports Initiative. He thanked the governor 
for his recent approval of 1 Youth 2 
Skills Solution Batch 2, which, he disclosed, will further empower 10,000 
Anambra youths through business start-up 
and expansion as well as give vent to other new feats like the construction of the 
SID permanent site and 
commencement of Anambra State 
Sports Festival. 
Agha Mba informed 
that the 5000 beneficiaries of the '1 Youth 
2 Skills Solution' Batch 1 have
organised themselves into platforms such as 
Solution Youthpreneurs Support 
Group (SYPSG) and 1 Youth 2 Skills 
Cooperatives to work with UNDP and 
close all gaps to ensure business 
growth and sustainability.
Responding on behalf of UNDP, Mrs. Oburu thanked 
the Ministry of Youth Development 
and the people of Anambra State for 
the level of hospitality and good 
working environment. She expressed 
happiness and readiness of UNDP to 
work with the Ministry of Youth
Development in closing all gaps in the 1 
Youth 2 Skills Solution as well as their 
other programmes. She thanked the 
Ministry for partnering with UNDP by 
offering its structures and facilities 
for the registration of Anambra 
Youths in the 'Young Africa 
Innovates,' where youths with innovative ideas in will be selected and encouraged to implement their ideas. 
She also stated that UNDP is targeting 
to fund 10,000 SMEs with a grant of 
₦100,000 per SME for business start-up expansion, and called for strong collaboration between UNDP and Anambra to achieve higher results.
On Tuesday (14th May) a UNDP Team led by the UNDP State 
Focal Person in Anambra, Wetalu Okosi visited the ministry and held an interactive forum with leaders of youth organisations, students' leaders and representatives of various youths' programs in Anambra State.
Also present during the two meetings 
were the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Martin Agbili, the Special Assistant to the 
Governor on Youth Development, 
Emeka Tony Omatah and delegations from 
Anambra Small Business Agency 
(ASBA) and Ministry of Industry.
Also in attendance were frontline youth leaders in the state such as Osita K. Ozalagba (Liaison Youths); Comrade Ken Okoli (PG ASATU Youth Wing), Obi Emeka Chukwudi (Chairman, NYCN, Anambra State Chapter), Obinna C . Nweke (Ohanaeze Representative) as well as Patrick Egwuatu ( Coordinator SYSPG), Okafor Ernest (NANS National), Okoye Ernest (NANS Chairman, JCC, Anambra State) among others.
A valedictory part of the events was the 
presentation of 1 Youth 2 Skills 
branded materials to the UNDP
delegation as well as the international body's mementoes to the commissioner and his team.