Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to youth development, saying his government is backing young people with skills, funding and opportunities to participate in governance.
Sani stated this on Friday at the 2026 International Youth Day Conference in Kaduna, where he presented N3 million each to outstanding young innovators whose work has contributed to science, technology and human development.
Among the beneficiaries were Computer Engineering students of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, who developed an innovative walking aid designed to assist visually impaired persons.
Also recognised was Fauziyya Muhammad Auwal of Kaduna State University, described as the first female astronaut candidate with Titans Space Industries, Nigeria’s first female analog astronaut for the 2026 LunAres Research Station in Poland. She is also the founder of ASTHERA, an initiative promoting space technology.
Eight Microchip Designers selected for specialised training under the Kaduna State Human Capital Development initiative also received support, alongside Al Amin Mohammed Idris and Shamsudeen Jibril, winners of the National Board for Technology Incubation NEXTGEN Challenge.
The governor said the awards reflected his administration’s decision to move youth empowerment beyond political rhetoric to practical investment.
According to him, Kaduna cannot achieve sustainable prosperity by sidelining the generation that will eventually inherit responsibility for the state’s institutions, economy and leadership.
“We will continue to expand skills acquisition and vocational training, because every young person deserves the opportunity to leave school with not only a certificate, but also a skill with which to earn a dignified living,” he said.
Sani added that his administration would intensify efforts to equip young people with digital and technological capabilities, stressing that Kaduna youths should become creators and owners within the digital economy rather than mere consumers.
“We will deepen digital literacy and technological innovation, because Kaduna’s youth must not merely consume the products of the digital economy; you must design, build and own them,” the governor said.
He also pledged greater attention to entrepreneurship and access to finance, noting that many promising ideas fail because young innovators lack the capital and opportunities needed to develop them.
Beyond economic empowerment, Sani said youth development must also provide young people with meaningful opportunities to participate in public service, governance and civic leadership.
“We must create credible pathways through which young people can enter public service, governance and civic leadership. Not as a favour granted by older generations,” he said.
The governor maintained that young people were already taking leadership roles in businesses, communities, schools, families, creative enterprises and social movements, adding that government alone could not deliver the transformation required.
He called for stronger collaboration among government, private businesses, civil society organisations, development partners, educational institutions and young people.
Sani also urged Kaduna youths to look beyond the circumstances of their background, including their local government, language, faith, gender, economic situation or disability.
“Build relationships beyond the boundaries you inherited. Learn from people whose experiences differ from yours. Create enterprises, ideas and institutions that solve real problems. And, above all, refuse to surrender your imagination to the difficulties of the present,” he said.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Youth Development, Gloria Ibrahim, said the theme of the 2026 International Youth Day Conference was “Different Contexts, Common Aspirations.”
Ibrahim said young people across Kaduna lived in different social and economic environments but shared common expectations, including decent employment, access to opportunities, peace, security and participation in decisions affecting their future.
She highlighted the creation of the Kaduna State Ministry of Youth Development in 2025 as one of the administration’s major steps towards making youth development a central component of governance.
According to her, the ministry was established to coordinate policies, programmes and partnerships focused on young people across the state.
The commissioner also cited the establishment of modern skills and vocational centres in Rigachikun, Zango Kataf and Soba as part of the government’s investment in youth empowerment.
She said the administration had equally expanded digital and technology skills programmes, giving young people access to ICT, digital literacy and other competencies required to compete in the global economy.
- FULL LIST: ADC unveils governorship candidates in 28 states - September 4, 2026
- Odogwu Asaba remanded over rape, death of 20-year-old - September 4, 2026
- International Youth Day: Uba Sani rewards Kaduna innovators with N3m each - September 4, 2026
