Ayodele Olawande and his Youth4Youth vision

Less than three months after assuming office in May 2023, President Bola Tinubu announced a list of 45 people as Ministerial nominees. Despite the rigour or otherwise that may have culminated in the original selection, it would seem something was egregiously absent.

On page 59 of the President’s renewed hope manifesto, which outlined his pact with Nigerians, the President promised inter alia to “reserve at least three cabinet positions for persons under the age of 40”.

In the original list, only two of the Ministerial nominees were undeniably under 40, and by the end of the Ministerial screening, the number had dropped to only one. It was therefore obvious that the cabinet, as it was then constituted, was not only inconsistent with the President’s campaign promise, it also showed that Nigeria’s young people under 35, who constitute more than 60 percent of the country’s population, were not adequately represented at the highest level of government in the country.

In keeping with his promise, President Tinubu announced Jamila Bio-Ibrahim (37) and Ayodele Wisdom Olawande (34) as Youth Ministers. This effectively made Olawande, whom people in close quarters describe as “AyoWisdom”, a fusion of his first and middle name, but more intuitively a reference to his sagacity, depth and pragmatic approach to issues, the youngest Ministerial nominee. Olawande at 34 eventually ended up becoming the youngest Minister in Tinubu’s cabinet. He also emerged as the youngest Nigerian to make it into the federal executive council in the current republic.

As one would typically expect in our clime, such news hardly makes it to the front pages. It was already drowned in competing events, happening at the same time. But this was an unusual story of a young man who had come from humble beginnings to rise to the highest level of government in Nigeria at the youngest age possible. Such a story deserves to be told.

Olawande’s meteoric rise, though exceptional, is an example of the true Nigerian story where, through vision, focus, sheer hard work and resilience, the sons and daughters of proletariats can become heads of government and chief executives of multinationals.

The same story was once told of Sen. Binta Masi Garba, in an interview with senior journalist and media executive, Kadaria Ahmed. In the interview, Sen. Masi Garaba recounted the day she sat on the same panel with Hajiya Aisha Babangida, the daughter of former head of state, General Ibrahim Babangida. Sen. Masi Garba, former Adamawa state senator, recalled that her father was a driver to the former head of state. It was therefore unimaginable that a day would come when the daughter of a driver and that of a former head of state would sit side by side. She went on to admonish the young girls at the ActionAid event, that if they have focus, vision and remain undeterred; they can turn their story around and transform their lives.

In recognition of his privilege, Olawande believes that his legacy would be to ensure that his story becomes the norm and not the exception. According to him, this is why he has decided to tag the vision for his office as Youth4Youth. During our recent video conversation, Olawande told me that he is committed to ensuring a country that provides equal opportunities for all its young people, where every young person is equipped with relevant skills and buoyed with the hope of a greater tomorrow.

I asked him how he hopes to achieve this vision, Olawande said his office will be aggressive in ensuring that the majority of our young people get technical and vocational education, an effort he is looking to champion through his brainchild, the Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA). He said he is convinced that our human capital remains our greatest asset, and what we make of our huge youth population will be determined by how much they are empowered with the skills that are relevant for the future of jobs. Now listen to his punchline, “a country without skill loses value”.

The second dimension of his two-pronged Youth4Youth plan is youth engagement, national reorientation and awareness. Olawande, a former youth leader and a grassroots politician himself, believes that the Tinubu administration must take the government closer to the people. He is currently championing a national engagement with young people across the country. He goes ahead to throw up the challenge to all political leaders that they must all come down from their high horses. “We must go to the hamlets and villages to gauge the mood of the people and feel their pulse, this is the primary essence of governance,” he said.

Olawande also believes that engagement will be a major tool for addressing the current insecurity challenges ravaging our country. I know that he is already walking the talk on this one. The other day, I saw images and news reports from his visit to Maiduguri, Borno state, regarded as the epicentre of terrorism in Nigeria. In Maiduguri, he engaged the men of the Nigerian army and reassured them of the government’s commitment to their welfare. He also spent some time with the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) members in Maiduguri, where he also explained the government’s plan to them.

He goes on to highlight some of the other plans of his office including transforming the National Youth Service Programme to align with current realities, setting up a national job bank where employers can attract a pool of qualified and highly skilled youths; a competitive job fair that will convene top multinationals and corporations and support for small and medium scale enterprises, working together with Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN).

With Olawande’s plans and vision set to launch fully in the coming days, I am hopeful that his current effort can move the needle of change and provide hope to our teeming young people, who daily despair on the promises of a better tomorrow.

Seun Awogbenle, a development and public policy professional, writes from United Kingdom. He can be reached via [email protected]