In view of the rising cost of living and economic hardship being experienced across the country, the Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin has called for increased involvement of Local Governments in the various skills acquisition and vocational training programs for youths across the country.
The Speaker made the call on Thursday while ruling on a motion sponsored by member representing Ogbomoso North State Constituency, Hon. Olubisi Margaret Michael.
Hon. Ogundoyin noted that with the continuous rise in unemployment amongst the youth, and the high cost of living in Nigeria, Government at all levels must be involved in entrepreneurship development programs for the youths.
He explained that more vocational training programs would help in reducing the crave for white collar jobs among the young Nigerians.
According to the Speaker, as the closest to the grassroots, it is important to involve Local Governments in skills acquisition and capacity building programs for the youth in order to reach as many unemployed young people as possible.
“There is the vital need for the involvement of Local Councils in activities and programmes aimed at addressing youth unemployment and promoting economic empowerment. The nation is experiencing economic problems at the moment, so we need to put in place more skill acquisition programs to enable the youth survive this hard time.”
He stressed the importance of synergy among all tiers of Government in the implementation and coordination of youth development and skills acquisition programs for the youth to achieve the desired results.
“Government should establish more vocational training programme centres in our Local Governments. This will equally reduce crimes amongst the youth.”