Unemployment Aided the Emergence Of Boko Haram - Sanusi

KATSINA, Oct 05, (THEWILL) - Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Sanusi Lamido Sanusi has linked the emergence of Boko Haram to the unemployment problem in Nigeria, saying unemployed youths in Nigeria have now become a threat to the national economy.

The CBN Governor who spoke in Katsina at a lecture he delivered titled "Nigerian Youth a Threat to National Economy" at the graduation of students of Katsina Vocational Training Centre, stated that Nigerian youths should be the productive base of the economy, yet majority of them roam the streets in search of livelihood and employment with no much hope for the future.

He lamented that current statistics indicated that over 50 per cent of the total population of youths in Nigeria are unemployed saying the situation is unacceptable and will continue to become a threat for the development of the country.

According to him, "Politicians tend to forget that the Nigerian people, especially the youths cannot continue voting them into power when their lives are not improving," stressing that the Central Bank has introduced measures to minimize the problem of unemployment with such measures like the CBN/NYSC Youth Empowerment Programme.

He said under the programme 93,000 corps members have so far been sensitized on empowerment programme while the central bank and Intercontinental Bank have entered into discussion on the modalities for partnership under CBN/NYSC youth empowerment.

In his speech, Governor Ibrahim Shehu Shema of Katsina said his administration has trained over 2,000 youths in different handcrafts.

Shema represented by his deputy, Umar Damari commended the initiator of Katsina Vocational Training Centre for complementing government efforts in reducing unemployment.