Date: 2011-10-12

Just as the World Bank agrees to offer assistance to the Kwara State Bridge Empowerment Scheme (KWABES), political office holders in the State have resolved to contribute certain proportion of their income as financial support for the scheme while the Federal Government is also set to adopt the scheme as a national model in the country.  

This decision came on the heels of calls by eight states, including Kwara, on the World Bank for financial assistance with a view to finding lasting solution to the problem of youth restiveness in their states.

The Special Assistant to the governor on youth empowerment, Alhaji Sakariyau Babatunde, who disclosed this, said the financial support for KWABES was led by Distinguished Senator Bukola Saraki who had pledged on behalf of his colleagues in the National Assembly to contribute certain portion of their income to the scheme.

According to Babatunde, the decision was taken by Governor Ahmed, who had shown leadership by example by expressing support for KWABES and encouraged other political office holders in the state to support the scheme financially, while modality for the implementation was being worked out.

Alhaji Babatunde disclosed further that after a meeting of states that have penchant for youth empowerment with the World Bank officials in Abuja, the Bank agreed to offer assistance to the eight states, zeroing in on human capital development and actual cash flow to Kwara, Cross River, Osun, Enugu, Niger, Ekiti, Oyo and Bauchi States.

According to the Special Assistant, the World Bank agreed that data base should be established in the respective states to ascertain the actual number of unemployed youths and their areas of specialization.

The States, he said, are also expected to disclose the training institutions in their states and the job opportunities available, pointing out that the States were in addition required to develop a blueprint on project implementation manual.

The blueprint, the World Bank insisted, must highlight what was done by the respective states in the area of youth empowerment, advising them to consider areas like labour-based programmes such as sanitation, security and traffic, among others.

To achieve all these objectives, the World Bank planned to embark on capacity building training in the states that have indicated interest in youth empowerment which is expected to come up in the first quarter of next year.

Apart from regular visits to all the affected states between now and December to know what progress have been made in the area of youth empowerment, the World Bank also promised to hold series of meetings with KWABES officials in Kwara State to ascertain the progress so far made as well as the financial needs of the scheme.

KWABES, which was introduced by the Abdulfatah Ahmed’s administration as part of measures to checkmate the high level of unemployment among youths in the State, is now used as a test case for other states involved in youth empowerment.

Abdulwahab Oba
Chief Press Secretary
to the Kwara State Governor
12/10/2011