Nigeria is partnering with Equatorial Guinea on youth development through a treaty expected to be finalized by the end of 2024.
The Minister of Youth Development, Dr. Jamila Bio Ibrahim, announced this on Thursday while discussing her role on President Bola Tinubu’s visit to Equatorial Guinea.
Dr. Ibrahim reiterated the current administration’s commitment to youth development in Nigeria and emphasized that “President Tinubu is committed to collaborating with other African leaders to harness youth demography on the African continent.”
She explained, “The purpose of this trip, accompanying Mr. President to Equatorial Guinea, was to explore areas of youth development with our Equatorial Guinean counterparts.
“We are in the process of reaching a treaty, an agreement on youth development with my counterpart, which we will finalize through the Joint Commission later this year.
“From Mr. President’s speeches at various bilateral engagements, he has clearly stated his commitment to collaborating with other African leaders to harness the youth demography, the bulge of young people in Africa, towards transformational economic development of the continent. Only when we are strong as a continent, and all leaders come together, can we harness the potential of our young people across Africa.”
Regarding the treaty, the Minister noted that the Equatorial Guinean government has agreed to collaborate with Nigeria on the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), including engaging in peer learning.
Dr. Ibrahim added, “I cannot say 100% right now because it is not finalized. However, I can share a few of the mutually agreed points, such as considering collaboration on the NYSC initiative, engaging in peer learning, and exploring areas of skills development and transfer.”
The Minister also mentioned potential collaborations in the fashion industry and the agro-forestry sector, including cash crops. She stated, “Although Equatorial Guinea is not as populous as Nigeria, we want to see how we can support and collaborate by channeling some of our youth population to produce commodities for Equatorial Guinea across various sectors. Through the Presidential Initiative on Youth Enterprise Clusters, we are working to develop our furniture value chain through agro-forestry, as well as the fashion, garment, and cash crop sectors. This represents a viable opportunity for collaboration.” she stated.