In a bid to drive economic growth and transformation, the NdiAbia Communities’ Development Initiative has launched the ‘Youth Out Loud Abia’ programme, aimed at mobilizing, mentoring, and mainstreaming 1.7 million youths across Abia State.
The programme, under the Abia Communities Cooperative for Empowerment and Economic Development (ACCEED), seeks to empower emerging business ventures and foster community-driven growth across the state.
It focuses on key sectors such as the digital economy, creative economy, agro-economy, cultural economy, green economy, blue economy, and orange economy.
According to Rev. Chidi Jacob, Director General of NdiAbia, the initiative will not only drive economic growth but also cultivate a new generation of empowered and responsible citizens dedicated to sustainable development and transformation in the state.
He explained that the program is structured around the core principles of Village2Village and ward2ward citizen engagement, education, and eco-citizenship, and is poised to significantly contribute to the state’s economy.
“This initiative will not only drive economic growth but will also cultivate a new generation of empowered and responsible citizens dedicated to sustainable development and transformation in our state,” Jacob said.
Victor Wilkinson Agih, Lead Sustainable Development Expert and Impact-Investment and Innovation Director for ACCEED, noted that the decentralized model facilitates a smart impact investment cooperative empowerment network of over 170 ward-level enterprise and community development hubs and 17,000 Startup Cooperatives.
According to him, “This decentralized model facilitates a smart impact investment cooperative empowerment network of over 170 ward-level enterprise and community development hubs and 17,000 Startup Cooperatives. By leveraging these hubs, ACCEED creates opportunities for the next generation, enabling village-to-village strategic socio-economic engines of growth that are essential for sustainable development.”
The initiative also aims to reorient the values of Abia youths and redirect their energy away from rising restiveness and social vices such as drug abuse.
The ‘Youth Out Loud Abia’ program is open to all Abia youths, who can sign up on the ACCEED website to join the movement and become a force for positive change in their communities.
The NdiAbia Communities’ Development Initiative has called on NdiAbia at home and abroad, corporate partners, and development agencies to connect with them and support this groundbreaking programme.
VANGUARD
