Opinion
Celebrating Global Youth Service Day
Today is Global Youth Service Day (GYSD), a coordinated annual event which gathers young people around the world in conducting community services and activities that benefit their communities, their countries and the world.
It is a public awareness and education campaign that highlights the amazing contributions that young people make to their communities 365 days a year. As the largest service event in the world, it mobilises millions of young people to address the needs of their communities and educates the public, the media and policy makers about the year round contributions of young people as community leaders.
This year, like the previous years, millions of youth in over 100 countries are expected to carry out thousands of community improvement projects, youth forums, and celebration events. They will visit the homeless and less-privileged ones, tutor children and carry out some environment sanitation work.
GYSD is indeed a very important event that reminds us that everybody is important, that every individual has a role to play in the building of any nation. The value of that services rendered through the GYSD programmes cannot be quantified. That explains why many countries eagerly await this day.
Speaking on the significance of GYSD, the former United Nations Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan said, “Volunteers are some of our most valued patrons, and Global Youth Service Day celebrates the effect of the youngest of them”.
Today is therefore a good day to appraise the effort of the young people in the building of our nation – Nigeria. Agreed, Nigeria has the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Scheme, through which young graduates are supposed to render a compulsory one-year selfless service to the nation. Whether the scheme is still living up to the objectives of its establishment remains a big question.
But what happens after the youth service year. What about the non-graduate, uneducated Nigerian youths – the traders, mechanics, barbers, the artisans that make up the greater population of Nigerian youths? What are their contributions towards the development of the land?
Often, it is expected that government should provide for the citizens. Government is expected to make life worth living for the people through good governance and infrastructural provisions. That is accepted. But are the citizens, especially the young ones not supposed to make some sacrifices in order to move the nation forward?
Each time some young volunteers are seen trying to control traffic on the roads, help in maintaining healthy environments, it gives hope of a bright future for the nation. But then, more needs to be done.
Time was when young people in our communities used to set aside some days in the month for community works. On such day the young men would cut the grasses on the path to the stream, the village square, the markets. Clean the stream, while the young women and mothers engaged in sweeping and cooking for the young men at work.
Those days, widows and childless women in our villages had no reason to lament over their predicaments as the youths took time to attend to their needs. Young peoples then voluntarily participated in road construction or other development projects going on in their communities.
Today, the story is different. Everybody wants monetary reward for whatever services he renders to his community, state and the nation. Our young people today would want to be “settled” before any contractors carrier out any projects in their communities.
It was unheard of that strangers would come into a community and cart away their electrical installations or kidnap members of their community as the young men secured their land effectively. Today the spirit of voluntary service to the land is gone. Our young people now want to be paid to even clean up their environment and look after government facilities in their communities that are beneficial to them.
It is really unfortunate, and I think the National Orientation Agency (NOA), and other relevant ministeries agencies and parastatals have a great role to play in reorientating our young men and women They need to be educated on the importance of voluntary service to their communities, states and country at large.
However, looking at many of the countries whose young people will troupe out today to participate in the community service, you will find out that they take adequate care of their young ones. Many of these young people are gainfully employed. The unemployed ones receive some monthly allowances from their government. Their leaders know that the future of their countries lies on the young ones and they invest adequately on them. Is the situation the same in Nigeria?
The well-being of the youth and children in any nation is very important and it is an inevitable foundation for the successful human development of that country. How do Nigerian leaders of today cater for the well-being of the young people, especially the unemployed? Does the life-style of our leaders, both political and religious encourage anyone to make sacrifice for the nation? The media lately are full of stories of how some of government officials embezzled billions of naira belonging to the people. Can stories like this inspire the young people to make sacrifices for the country?
How can one really convince the Nigerian youths to render selfless services to the nation when government seems not to border about their welfare? Owing to the rot in our educational system, many young Nigerians are now queuing up in foreign embassies to obtain visas to study abroad, even in fellow African countries, like Ghana and South Africa, where the learning conditions are better.
There is no doubt that if the past generations of our leaders squandered all the money in the country, if they did not border about the good of the younger generations, the country would have been empty by now.
There is therefore need to think of our future leaders and take adequate care of them if we hope to get the best from them, if we hope we can have a country we can all be proud of in the future. The time to chart a new course of voluntary service that will bring about quality development in the country is now!
Calista Ezeaku
From all indications, Nigeria possesses enough human and material resources to become a true economic powerhouse in Africa. According to the National Population Commission (NPC, 2023), the country’s population has grown steadily within the last decade, presently standing at about 220 million people—mostly young, vibrant, and innovative. Nigeria also remains the sixth-largest oil producer in the world, with enormous reserves of gas, fertile agricultural land, and human capital.
Yet, despite this enormous potential, the country continues to grapple with underdevelopment, poverty, unemployment, and insecurity. Recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS, 2023) show that about 129 million Nigerians currently live below the poverty line. Most families can no longer afford basic necessities, even as the government continues to project a rosy economic picture.
The Subsidy Question
The removal of fuel subsidy in 2023 by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been one of the most controversial policy decisions in Nigeria’s recent history. According to the president, subsidy removal was designed to reduce fiscal burden, unify the foreign exchange rate, attract investment, curb inflation, and discourage excessive government borrowing.
While these objectives are theoretically sound, the reality for ordinary Nigerians has been severe hardship. Fuel prices more than tripled, transportation costs surged, and food inflation—already high—rose above 30% (NBS, 2023). The World Bank (2023) estimates that an additional 7.1 million Nigerians were pushed into poverty after subsidy removal.
A Critical Economic View
As an economist, I argue that the problem was not subsidy removal itself—which was inevitable—but the timing, sequencing, and structural gaps in Nigeria’s implementation.
- Structural Miscalculation
Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries remain nonfunctional. By removing subsidies without local refining capacity, the government exposed the economy to import-price pass-through effects—where global oil price shocks translate directly into domestic inflation. This was not just a timing issue but a fundamental policy miscalculation.
- Neglect of Social Safety Nets
Countries like Indonesia (2005) and Ghana (2005) removed subsidies successfully only after introducing cash transfers, transport vouchers, and food subsidies for the poor (World Bank, 2005). Nigeria, however, implemented removal abruptly, shifting the fiscal burden directly onto households without protection.
- Failure to Secure Food and Energy Alternatives
Fuel subsidy removal amplified existing weaknesses in agriculture and energy. Instead of sequencing reforms, government left Nigerians without refinery capacity, renewable energy alternatives, or mechanized agricultural productivity—all of which could have cushioned the shock.
Political and Public Concerns
Prominent leaders have echoed these concerns. Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, described the subsidy removal as “good but wrongly timed.” Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party also faulted the government’s hasty approach. Human rights activists like Obodoekwe Stive stressed that refineries should have been made functional first, to reduce the suffering of citizens.
This is not just political rhetoric—it reflects a widespread economic reality. When inflation climbs above 30%, when purchasing power collapses, and when households cannot meet basic needs, the promise of reform becomes overshadowed by social pain.
Broader Implications
The consequences of this policy are multidimensional:
- Inflationary Pressures – Food inflation above 30% has made nutrition unaffordable for many households.
- Rising Poverty – 7.1 million Nigerians have been newly pushed into poverty (World Bank, 2023).
- Middle-Class Erosion – Rising transport, rent, and healthcare costs are squeezing household incomes.
- Debt Concerns – Despite promises, government borrowing has continued, raising sustainability questions.
- Public Distrust – When government promises savings but citizens feel only pain, trust in leadership erodes.
In effect, subsidy removal without structural readiness has widened inequality and eroded social stability.
Missed Opportunities
Nigeria’s leaders had the chance to approach subsidy removal differently:
- Refinery Rehabilitation – Ensuring local refining to reduce exposure to global oil price shocks.
- Renewable Energy Investment – Diversifying energy through solar, hydro, and wind to reduce reliance on imported petroleum.
- Agricultural Productivity – Mechanization, irrigation, and smallholder financing could have boosted food supply and stabilized prices.
- Social Safety Nets – Conditional cash transfers, food vouchers, and transport subsidies could have protected the most vulnerable.
Instead, reform came abruptly, leaving citizens to absorb all the pain while waiting for theoretical long-term benefits.
Conclusion: Reform With a Human Face
Fuel subsidy removal was inevitable, but Nigeria’s approach has worsened hardship for millions. True reform must go beyond fiscal savings to protect citizens.
Economic policy is not judged only by its efficiency but by its humanity. A well-sequenced reform could have balanced fiscal responsibility with equity, ensuring that ordinary Nigerians were not crushed under the weight of sudden change.
Nigeria has the resources, population, and resilience to lead Africa’s economy. But leadership requires foresight. It requires policies that are inclusive, humane, and strategically sequenced.
Reform without equity is displacement of poverty, not development. If Nigeria truly seeks progress, its policies must wear a human face.
References
- National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). (2023). Poverty and Inequality Report. Abuja.
- National Population Commission (NPC). (2023). Population Estimates. Abuja.
- World Bank. (2023). Nigeria Development Update. Washington, DC.
- World Bank. (2005). Fuel Subsidy Reforms: Lessons from Indonesia and Ghana. Washington, DC.
- OPEC. (2023). Annual Statistical Bulletin. Vienna.
By: Amarachi Amaugo