Ogun govt priorities youth empowerment as key to community security- Akinmade

The Ogun State Government has continued to take deliberate and measurable steps that place youth empowerment at the centre of its community security strategy, according to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Strategy, Hon. Kayode Akinmade.

Akinmade stated this while delivering the keynote address at a one-day Youth Security Summit themed “Youth-Led Strategies for Community Security,” held at the NUT Secretariat, Kuto, Abeokuta. The summit was organised by the Ogun State Chapter of the Nigeria Youth Organization in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Youth Development.

He added that insecurity retreats when young people embrace leadership and responsibility, noting that communities grow stronger when youths lead with purpose.

Akinmade highlighted several initiatives of the Governor Dapo Abiodun administration targeted at youth empowerment and enhanced community security. These include the training of over 21,000 youths in vocational and digital skills, as well as strengthening the Amotekun Corps through the recruitment of young operatives and provision of improved operational equipment.

He urged youths across the state to play active roles in safeguarding their communities through community intelligence, digital early-warning tools, civic engagement, campus peace-building initiatives, and technology-enabled reporting systems.

Akinmade said “The challenges of our time — cybercrime, cultism, drug abuse, highway threats, and emerging community vulnerabilities — demand strategies that combine institutional structures with the innovation of our youth. Youth-led security does not mean assigning policing duties to young people, but creating structured avenues for meaningful involvement through community intelligence, digital alerts, civic influence, campus peace-building, social media awareness, neighbourhood vigilance, and tech-enabled reporting.”

He highlighted other interventions of the Abiodun administration, such as strengthened community policing, intensified anti-cultism campaigns in tertiary institutions, expanded counselling and mentorship for at-risk youths, rehabilitation support for young people affected by drug abuse, and wider youth enterprise programmes through local government skills-acquisition centres.

Additionally, the state government has improved lighting and safety infrastructure across selected communities to deter criminal activity and ensure safer night-time movement.

Akinmade reaffirmed his office’s commitment to driving youth-led communication platforms, security awareness campaigns, and the proposed Youth Security Innovation Framework, which aims to transform youth-generated ideas into practical solutions for community resilience and early threat detection.