Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi is optimistic Nigeria can hit the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) target of being poverty-free by 2030.
“The essence of the SDGs is to eradicate poverty globally and make the world a better place to live for everyone by 2030, Fayemi said during International Youth Day remarks in Ado Keti.
He maintained that with the necessary government’s support and encouragement, Nigerian youths are capable of helping the nation to achieve various SDGs goals.
“Throughout the world, there is a new order that recognizes the skills of young people, a new order that believes the society must be devoid of poverty and diseases, a new order that believes people must live well, a world free of pollution and how do we get there?
The governor said he was one of those incurable optimists, who shared the views that poverty can be eradicated in Nigeria in 2030 as projected, with diligent prosecution of the SDG’s programmes and policy.
Fayemi, who spoke in Ado Ekiti on Saturday during an event commemorating the 2019 International Youth Day, urged the youths to develop themselves intellectually and skillfully, to be able to compete with their contemporaries globally, since the world is now a “global village”.
Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on SDGs, Dr. Abimbola Solanke, described the SDG’s interaction with youths as the first of its kind in the state since 2015 when the goals were adopted by world leaders.
“It is worthy of note that Ekiti is fortunate to be part of the 21 States that will be celebrating 2019 edition of International Youth Day facilitated by Nigerian Youths Network in SDGs. Our mission is to use Ekiti youths as local SDGs advocates for meaningful impact.
“We need to let you know that since 2015 when SDGs was adopted by World Leaders, Ekiti State has not keyed into organizing and Converging Youths for SDGs development-oriented programmes and also establishing impact-driven structures and networks that will enable Ekiti Youths to take ownership of the goals”, She said.
