Vice President Kashim Shettima has launched the Labour Employment and Empowerment Programme (LEEP), an initiative of the President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, aimed at creating 2.5 million jobs across various sectors.
LEEP which was developed by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment is designed to tackle youth unemployment and position Nigeria as a competitive force in the global digital economy.
Speaking at the launch in Abuja on Tuesday, the Vice President described the initiative as a season of opportunity for Nigerians.
He emphasised the urgent need to prepare Nigerians for the future of work as shaped by rapid technological transformation, digital ecosystems and shifting global job dynamics.
The LEEP initiative, which anchored on six pillars of employment opportunities, is designed to equip Nigerians with critical digital, vocational and entrepreneurial skills.
It targets all sectors of the economy, including the growing gig and remote work economies, leveraging technology to connect employers with a ready, skilled workforce.
Shettima further discouraged the trend of mass emigration, known popularly as “Japa” and urged Nigerians to believe in the nation’s potential and invest their skills at home.
“All we need is to equip our youth. They don’t need to Japa from this country, we are a nation of over 230 million people, with a median age of 16.9, by 2050, we’ll be 440 million strong, the 10th most populous nation in the world”, the Vice President noted.
Highlighting Nigeria’s advantages from English language fluency to proximity to global market, Shettima also stressed the country’s potential to become a global outsourcing hub.
In his goodwill remarks, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Maigari Dingyadi, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to fighting unemployment through strategic and sustainable interventions.
