Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, said the State Government will partner the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) to build youth capacity through the Human Development Capital Fund initiative of the institute.
Governor Sanwo-Olu spoke during a courtesy visit to him by the Governing Council of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria led by the President and Chairman of the Council, Mr. Ken Opara at the Lagos House, Ikeja.
The Governor said his administration through the THEMES+ agenda will ensure no one is left behind in the delivery of good governance and dividends of democracy.
He said: “I am interested in anything that has to do with the youth and I will support them. Everything that we are doing is not just about providing opportunities, it is about ensuring that we can provide a future for the youthful population that we have in our country. We will give them a sense of hope and give them reasons for them to believe in our country. So, we will collaborate with CIBN in the area of the Human Development Capital Fund to ensure that we help and support the youths.
“Our THEMES+ agenda speaks to gender equality, extensive youth engagement and ensuring that we don’t leave anybody behind. So, as a government, we are committed to ensuring that we continue to move the level of governance up and ensure we leave office better than how we met it and create a path that those coming behind us will see clearly that governance is a serious business and something that must improve the quality of lives of the people.”
Speaking earlier, Opara congratulated Sanwo-Olu on his re-election as the Governor of Lagos State, which was primarily based on his notable achievements and antecedents as a distinguished banker per excellence. He also praised the Governor for his support for the banking industry by providing an enabling and safe environment for financial institutions to thrive.
Opara, who reiterated CIBN’s continuous relationship and partnership with Lagos State Government, implored the State Government to take advantage of the numerous experienced professionals in the Banking industry that can help handle various projects and initiatives of the government.
He said: “We can deepen the relationship between the Lagos State Government and the Institute as well as the banking and finance industry towards the growth and development of the State and our nation, Nigeria; especially working with Mr. Governor to deliver the ‘Greater Lagos Rising’ Agenda.
“There are lots of areas we have already been partnering with Lagos State and we think that in the area of building capacity, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria has set up a Human Development Capital Fund to be able to build the capacity of the younger once and we think this is an area that means so much for the Governor and Lagos State Government. They are very much interested in youth development.”