The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi has advised Nigerian youths not to be discouraged by the political and economic challenges in the country.

Obi in a message to mark International Youth Day (IYD) called on youths across the country to remain committed and resolute in the struggle for a new and better Nigeria.

“Unless we remain committed to the struggle for a better nation, we will not be able to achieve the New Nigeria of our dreams.

“We must remain resilient and persevere against every hardship and obstacle on our journey to a new nation,” Obi remarked.

The former Anambra State governor expressed hope that many of the nation’s challenges would be overcome if the leaders paid attention to youth development and productivity.

He blamed the high level of insecurity and high rate of social vices associated with youths, like drug and other substance abuse, on the high unemployment rate among the youths.

“According to reports, Nigeria tops in the ranking of countries with the highest rate of unemployment in the world, with a 33.3 per cent unemployment rate.

“And further findings show that Nigeria’s unemployment rate would further rise to 40.6per cent, due to the continuous flow of job seekers into the job market.

“With this high rate of youth unemployment where more than half of the population in their productive age are not working, the nation will continue to stagger under the weight of many economic and social challenges.

“It’s only by providing job opportunities and massively supporting the growth of small businesses in the country, that the challenge of high insecurity, rising inflation, etc will be taken care of,” Obi stated.

He reiterated his firm commitment to building a new Nigeria anchored on youths’ development, noting that their youthful energy, skills, and potentials were critical ingredients needed to move the nation from consumption to production. (Saturday Telegraph)

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