Speaker Abbas advocates for youth leadership in Nigeria, emphasizes preparation for governance roles

Speaking at the launch of the Leadership for Equity, Advocacy and Development Fellowship by the Gender Mobile Initiative in Abuja, Abbas, represented by Kafilat Ogbara, Chairman of the House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development, stressed that Nigeria's democratic future relies on developing ethical and competent leaders. He highlighted that leadership involves responsibility, accountability, and respect for democratic institutions, and that without proper preparation, young people might not effectively leverage political office for societal improvement. Abbas also affirmed the House's commitment to increasing women's political participation through a proposed constitutional amendment for reserved seats in legislative bodies, addressing barriers like inadequate campaign finance and cultural stereotypes.

Omowumi Ogunrotimi, Executive Lead of the Gender Mobile Initiative, explained that the 18-month LEAD Fellowship aims to bridge the gap between student leadership and meaningful governance participation for 1,000 student leaders from 10 tertiary institutions, focusing on ethical leadership, public policy, and democratic governance. House spokesman Akin Rotimi and Prof Abubakar Sulaiman, Director-General of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies, al