By Our Political Correspondent
The Lagos State chapter of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has accused the state government of neglecting young people despite their critical role in the state’s economy, unveiling an ambitious three-point economic empowerment agenda aimed at tackling unemployment, promoting entrepreneurship and expanding opportunities for youths.
The opposition party said successive administrations had reduced youths to political tools during election campaigns, only to abandon them after securing electoral victories, insisting that Lagos’ future could not be guaranteed while its largest and most productive population remained economically marginalised.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by its Publicity Secretary, Ayodele Kazeem, the party lamented what it described as years of inadequate investment in youth development, saying thousands of young Lagosians continued to struggle with unemployment, limited access to vocational training and poor support for entrepreneurship.
According to the party, young people should occupy a central place in government planning and economic policy rather than being remembered only during electioneering campaigns.
“Young people deserve far more than campaign rhetoric, symbolic appointments or short-term empowerment programmes. They deserve deliberate policies that equip them with relevant skills, provide access to capital, encourage innovation and create sustainable pathways to economic independence,” the statement said.
To address what it described as long-standing structural challenges, the APM unveiled a comprehensive Youth and Economic Empowerment Agenda built around three major policy initiatives.
Under the proposal, an APM-led administration would establish Skills Development Centres in all 20 Local Government Areas of Lagos State to provide free vocational and technical training in sectors considered critical to future economic growth.
The party identified technology, renewable energy, agribusiness, manufacturing, construction, digital innovation and the creative industry as priority areas where young people would receive practical, market-driven skills to improve employability and promote enterprise.
Beyond skills acquisition, the party pledged to establish a Youth Enterprise Fund that would provide grants, low-interest loans, startup financing and business advisory services to qualified young entrepreneurs through what it described as a transparent, merit-based process with minimal bureaucracy.
According to APM, the initiative would enable innovative youths to transform business ideas into sustainable enterprises capable of generating employment and stimulating economic growth.
The party also promised to introduce a Youth Procurement Inclusion Policy, reserving a defined percentage of government contracts for qualified youth-owned businesses.
It argued that such a policy would ensure young entrepreneurs become active participants in the state’s economic development instead of remaining spectators in government spending.
“Our vision is simple yet transformative: Lagos youths deserve opportunity, not exploitation; empowerment, not neglect; inclusion, not tokenism,” the statement added.
The party maintained that meaningful youth empowerment remained indispensable to building a prosperous and globally competitive Lagos, calling on residents, particularly young people, to support its vision for inclusive governance.
APM said its proposed policies were designed to reposition government as a catalyst for innovation, enterprise and job creation, while providing young Lagosians with the resources required to realise their economic potential.
The party concluded by urging the state’s youth population to rally behind its agenda, arguing that investing in young people through skills development, entrepreneurship and economic inclusion remains one of the most effective pathways to sustainable growth, employment generation and long-term prosperity in Lagos State.
