Everyevery: May our readers know who is Abubakar Ahmed?
Abubakar Ahmed: I am Abubakar Ahmed. Member of the Young Leaders Network (Initiative For Leadership Development and Youth Empowerment) a Civil Society Organization based in Bauchi. I am also an Anti-Corruption crusader.
Everyevery: In your present capacity as a member of the Young Leaders Network, what are the major challenges bedeviling youths in Northern Nigeria?
Abubakar Ahmed: In my understanding of the challenges facing young people in the northern part of Nigeria, there is what i call a treacherous triangle. This triangle consist of Illiteracy, poverty and unemployment. These three ugly terms are interrelated.
Everyevery: How are you going to rate the northern youths in terms of literacy in comparison to their southern counterparts?
Abubakar Ahmed: Its obvious that when one talks on literacy of the northern youths in comparison to their southern contemporaries, the southern youths have proven to be more advanced. But generally speaking, the literacy level of the northern folks is not as bad as painted. I had coarse to interact with some southern youths, their level of sophistication is not as excellent as exaggerated. There are so many factors that culminated to put the northern youths in this disadvantage position.
Everyevery: What are the factors that put the northern youths backwards educationally?
Abubakar Ahmed: When one talks of the factors that put the northern youths on the background educationally, what readily comes to the minds of most average northerners is the failure of government to provide particularly basic education to the citizens. That could be one of the factor. But to me personally, failure to appreciate the need to take ownership of educational processes by both the lead and the led is one of the major factor responsible. Let me explain further so that you understand what am saying in this regard.
It is established that the north is left backward in terms of education, no doubt about this. For instance in my State, Bauchi. Today, we dominate media platforms because of our numerical strength in terms of out of school children, in reality, the numbers far outweigh the official figures given by the government and other partners. With this ugly development, there is hardly any community that one will visit and see either a community primary or secondary school built and managed by the community. This tells you the level at which we take the education of our children and youth. I think for a region that found herself in this mess, taking ownership of educating our young ones should be our top most priority while charging the government to compliment our little efforts; since it has been established that government alone with competition in its scarce resources cannot educate freely and compulsorily our young ones.
Everyevery: Regarding poverty, what do you think cause poverty among youths in northern Nigeria despite the fact that many of them are educated?
Abubakar Ahmed: Regarding your question, i think what contributes to the poverty level of our educated youths is the orientation of the northern elites which has extended to every segment of the society.
Everyevery: What is that orientation of the northern elite that contributes to the poverty level of the educated youths in the region?
Abubakar Ahmed: For instance, the elites only want their children to go to school from Primary, Secondary to Tertiary level without introducing them to any form of vocation or skill which they will later use in life for their survival. The orientation is that if I allow my child to take on any vocation, it will distract him in his educational pursuit. All that is done with the intention that after graduation from tertiary institution, a public service job will be available for the children.
However, the realities of today have proven to be on the contrary. That is why we have educated youths that are poor, because they don’t have any job doing. Securing job placements even for the children of the high heeled in government establishments is proving to be difficult these days.
Everyevery: How can you describe unemployment among youths in northern Nigeria?
Abubakar Ahmed: Unemployment is no doubt a nightmare to the northern region. Youths certainly require economic empowerments which are jobs. There is a limit to the number of jobs government can generate and create for the youths. What is expected of government here is to provide the enabling environment needed for the youths to succeed in their chosen enterprises.
Everyevery: Apart from illiteracy, poverty and unemployment, is there any problem bedeviling youths in northern Nigeria?
Abubakar Ahmed: There are other monstrous social problems that bedevil the youths in the northern part of the country. One of which is drug abuse. This is gradually becoming the new order among young people and most disturbing is young women that are into drug and substance abuse with resultant negative consequences to economic growth and development of the region. Able bodied youths have become worthless mentally and physically and as such cannot contribute to the development of the region. As far as the economy of the north is concerned, these group of people have become nuisance to it.
Another problem facing the northern region is corporate begging among the youth. This is a new trend that northern youth have ventured into in a more corporate and fanciful manner with the aim of making quick money through begging particularly to those holding political offices. This menace is even more clearly visible in the operations of youth focused groups and associations. Groups and associations that were established on a very sound foundation and footing have become money making ventures for the youth. For instance, students unions and other groups in the northern region have made Abuja their favourite destination in the quest to achieving their selfish interests. For those that care to observe happenings in the north, one thing that is common to these youth focused groups is seeking for financial support or assistance from political office holders, mark you not money for the betterment of their respective communities, which groups like that are expected to address; but rather for their selfish greed. Until our young people began to appreciate the dignity of labour as a national value, we’ll only see and talk of developments in other regions of the country.
Everyevery: Recently, kidnapping, banditry, acts of terrorism and other criminal activities are becoming rampant among northern youths, apart from unemployment and poverty, are there other factors prompting our youths to embark on committing such criminalities?
Abubakar Ahmed: Well, in my understanding, there are triggers to criminalities. For instance, when attention is not given to certain segments of the society or there is failure by government and other stakeholders to address the needs of the people particularly social needs, one should expect to see criminal activities taken place in an alarming proportion like what we are witnessing today in the north.
When few privileged people in the society by virtue of their positions are living a flamboyant lifestyles with their children and relatives while ordinary people are left at the mercy of their Creator, certainly they are citizens and want a decent life as well. The effect will be in terms of kidnapping, armed robbery and the likes. Crime has become the second most lucrative business after politics.
Until the northern elites see the problems of the northern region as theirs, and come up with a practicable solution to the problems particularly as it relates to the youth, crime will continue to increase in the region. More investments are needed in human development of the young minds to curtail some of the vices we are currently witnessing been committed by the youths.
Everyevery: What advice are you going to give to the northern youths?
Abubakar Ahmed: The youths should see and parade themselves as agents of positive change in their respective communities. Given their vulnerabilities as identified at the beginning of the interview, they have greater responsibility to promote peace, security and national unity. Their predicament should not hinder them from contributing their quota to national development.
Most importantly, the youth should take pride in engaging themselves in useful ventures whether corporate or otherwise. We should not forget the fact that the generation of our parents have failed us as youths, it is now left on us not fail the generation of our children.
Everyevery: What government should do or continue doing to improve the condition of living of the northern youths?
Abubakar Ahmed: Government on her part should as a matter of urgency priorities the needs of the youth and articulate it into her development plan. Unfortunately, none of the northern states have a development plan for the youths to make them positively engaged to consider their role as youth of the northern region. Additionally, government must provide the enabling environment needed for youth empowerment and development. There should be a synergy on the part of all the 19 northern states in coming up with a a practicable and acceptable models towards addressing problems facing the youth in the region.
Everyevery: Thankyou immensely, Mr. Abubakar Ahmed for answering our questions.
Abubakar Ahmed: It is a pleasure.