The Global Shapers Community, a youth initiative of the World Economic Forum, has expressed its interest in collaborating with the Voice of Nigeria, the country’s external radio broadcasting service, to support national development and shape the Nigerian narrative.
Chimdi Neliaku, the curator of the Abuja Global Shapers Hub, made this known on Tuesday when she paid a courtesy call to the Director General of the Voice of Nigeria, Malam Jibrin Baba Ndace, in Abuja.
“We are a city-based network of young people who are committed to applying ourselves towards nation-building and community development.
“We are here to look at ways that we can collaborate and support the Voice of Nigeria in its initiatives, especially as we have an extensive network within and outside the continent and Nigeria,” she said.
She highlighted some of the projects that the Abuja hub has carried out over the years, such as settling hospital bills for victims of the Naya bomb blast, renovating schools, training teachers, planting over 6,000 trees, engaging in high-level dialogues with the army on youth and security, and partnering with the police to build meaningful relationships between law enforcement agencies and young people.
She said the Global Shapers Community is a completely volunteer-based organization that does not pay any salary to its members, adding that everything they do is driven by their passion to contribute their quota to national development.
Neliaku also noted that the Global Shapers Community shares similar objectives with the Voice of Nigeria, which is to shape the Nigerian story and the narrative.
“When our dear DG in his office was showing us the mission, it ended with shaping the Nigerian story or shaping the narrative. And we smiled to ourselves. So it means that we’ve both been charged with almost the same responsibility, just that one is more senior and we are following at the back,” she said.
Education for Peace Summit
She also invited the Director General of Voice of Nigeria to attend an education for peace summit that the Global Shapers Community is organising on Tuesday.
She said the summit is the first-ever initiative that brings together law enforcement agencies and the Ministry of Education, or the parastatals under the Ministry of Education, to look at how they can address with creative and innovative solutions the issues of insecurity and how they have impacted education in Nigeria.
“We felt it would be very important to invite our dear DG and to invite the Voice of Nigeria to also help tell this story so that we can push forward this initiative that we’ve put together,” she said.
She also expressed the hope that they can create some radio content with the Voice of Nigeria to tell some youth stories, as there is a lot that young people in Nigeria are doing that deserves to be heard and celebrated.
Partnership for Youth Development
Malam Ndace, the Director General of the Voice of Nigeria, thanked Neliaku and her team for the visit and commended them for their efforts in promoting youth development and social impact.
He said the Voice of Nigeria is open to partnering with the Global Shapers Community and other youth organisations that share its vision of shaping the Nigerian story and narrative.
“It’s very important that we offer this (VON) platform for people who believe in Nigeria,” he said.
He said the Voice of Nigeria is ready to support the education for peace summit and other initiatives that the Global Shapers Community is working on.
He also said the Voice of Nigeria is ready to work with the Global Shapers Community to create radio content that showcases the achievements and challenges of the Nigerian youth.
He urged the Global Shapers Community to continue to be positive agents of change and to inspire other young people to join them.
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