Unemployment: Lagos seeks stakeholders’ partnership, targets 1,000 jobs for youth

By Olasunkanmi Akoni

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has called on stakeholders across various sectors to collaborate in addressing the challenge of unemployment, especially among the youth.

The Governor made the appeal during the 2025 Stakeholders’ Forum, organized by the Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment, with the theme: “Passion to Prosperity: Unlocking Youth Potential in Lagos.”

Represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Mrs. Abimbola Saliu-Hundeyin, Sanwo-Olu assured that the state government would create an additional 1,000 jobs through the Graduate Internship Placement Programme (GIPP).

He described Lagos as a hub of innovation and resilience, blessed with dynamic and creative young people contributing across diverse sectors including technology, fashion, music, and agriculture.

“We need to nurture that passion, provide direction, and turn it into real results,” he said. “Government must continue to create an environment that allows passion to blossom into success, which means ensuring access to quality education, relevant skills, mentorship, funding, and a supportive ecosystem.”

Sanwo-Olu emphasized entrepreneurship as a driver of innovation and wealth creation, urging stakeholders to provide platforms where mentorship and collaboration between young talents and seasoned professionals can thrive.

Guest speaker, Mallam Ahmed Gobir, President and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM), charged stakeholders to see job creation as economic survival rather than charity.

“Youth empowerment is not CSR; it is national security. Every idle youth is an opportunity lost; every empowered youth is GDP gained,” he said, urging business leaders to open doors to young talent and invest in people.

Gobir also encouraged youths to explore start-ups and self-employment opportunities rather than waiting solely for formal jobs.

Earlier, Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, Akinyemi Ajigbotafe, said the forum was a strategic platform to align efforts toward unlocking youth potential and driving prosperity.

In his closing remarks, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Adebayo Olayinka, reaffirmed the state’s commitment to youth empowerment and sustainable job creation, noting that contributions from the forum would shape actionable strategies and policies for Lagos residents.

The post Unemployment: Lagos seeks stakeholders’ partnership, targets 1,000 jobs for youth appeared first on Vanguard News.