Christian Aid, in collaboration with Connected Development (CODE), is set to support six youth-focused organisations through its Youth Challenge Fund. The fund is part of Christian Aid’s effort to boost youth empowerment in Nigeria.

The Youth Challenge Fund will see CODE manage £30,000 in a sub-grants to six organisations. The six organisations will thereby be empowered to address some of the growing developmental challenges across communities in Nigeria. CODE will also build the capacities of the selected organisations to drive their initiatives towards achieving sustainable results. Over 120 applications were received for the Youth Challenge Fund, and after assessments the six organisations were chosen because their projects are focused on impacting youth in the most remote communities in the country.

At the launch of the Youth Challenge Fund, the Country Director of Christian Aid Nigeria, Charles Usie, said, ‘[T]he fund is in recognition of the immense capacity of young people to address some of the growing developmental challenges across communities in Nigeria if given the opportunity and required resources’.

Also speaking at the launch, the Executive Officer of CODE, Hamzat Lawal, said, ‘Young people constitute 60 percent of the Nigerian population whose potentia[l] should be activated’. Lawal also said that government has to understand the growing importance and potential of young people and consider their contribution to nation-building.

Source: International Centre for Investigative Reporting

Photo source: Ncvo London