Defence Minister Gen. Christopher Musa said Nigeria’s greatest asset is not its oil or other natural resources but its youthful population.

He therefore wants the youth to be mobilised and empowered for national development.

Musa spoke during the inauguration of the Musawah for Youth and Development Initiative (MUSAWAH 4 Y-D) in Kaduna yesterday.

MUSAWAH 4 Y-D is a socio-political and development-oriented platform established to promote youth empowerment, civic participation and grassroots mobilisation.

The Minister, who was represented by his Senior Special Assistant on Intelligence and Security, Gen. Bala Isandu, described the initiative as a movement designed to harness the potential of young Nigerians and women for national development and democratic participation.

“Today is not just the birth of another support group. It is the formal activation of a movement — a movement of young Nigerians and women who believe in service, in development and in the future of this nation,” Gen Musa said.

The Minister commended the hundreds of support and interest groups affiliated to the initiative, noting that they represent farmers, students, artisans, professionals, women groups, faith-based organisations and community associations from across Kaduna State.

According to him, MUSAWAH 4 Y-D was founded on the principles of equality, inclusion and shared responsibility for development.

“We called this initiative MUSAWAH 4 Y-D because it speaks to equality, inclusion and shared responsibility for the development of our dear country.

“Our country’s greatest asset is not oil or land — it is our youth. Over 60 per cent of Nigeria’s population is under 30. If we do not engage them, empower them and give them direction, we have failed,” he said.

Gen. Musa stated that the group was created to mobilise young people for civic participation, support grassroots development efforts and deepen support for the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani.

He charged members of the organisation to return to their communities and polling units to mobilise support, register voters and promote issue-based political engagement.

Reject politics of bitterness. We will campaign on performance, not propaganda. The road to 2027 starts today, and it starts with all of us together,” the administrator advised the members.

James Kanyip, who represented at the event, said youth development remains critical to addressing insecurity, poverty and social instability.

According to him, most security challenges confronting the country are linked to youth unemployment and lack of economic opportunities.

He said: “When we talk about youth development, we are not just talking about politics. Development transcends politics. We must begin to look at the economic value of youth development.

“A lot of bandits we have today are not old men. A lot of kidnappers are not old men. A lot of those engaged in insurgency are not old men. More than 90 per cent are youths because they have not been engaged.”

The governor added that his administration has continued to invest in skill acquisition and human capital development through vocational training centres across the state.

“When you engage youths through education, skills acquisition and human capacity development, you take them away from poverty, insecurity, radicalisation and criminality,” Sani added.

Earlier, the National Coordinator of MUSAWAH 4 Y-D Initiative, Polycarp Gankon, said the organisation had built an extensive grassroots structure across Kaduna State.

According to him, no fewer than 266 support and interest groups have formally registered with the initiative, while mobilisation structures have been established across the state’s 255 wards and thousands of polling units.

“As of today, we have 266 support groups registered with MUSAWAH. These include farmers’ cooperatives, student unions, women’s associations, artisan groups, faith-based organisations, community development associations, professional bodies and political groups.

“There is no group that has fewer than 50 members. We don’t compromise standards in MUSAWAH. We go for the real figures, and anybody can come and verify our records,” he said. (The Nation)