*Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency, affirms the effort is aimed at helping the Nigerian Government to translate the concerns and aspirations of the youths into policy proposals for overall national development
Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has disclosed its readiness to deploy technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to capture, analyse and organise ideas generated by young Nigerians at the maiden National Youth Conference.
ConsumerConnect reports NITDA noted the objective of this effort is to help the Nigerian Government in translating the concerns and aspirations of the youths into policy proposals for overall national development.
Malam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director-General of NITDA, disclosed this while delivering a goodwill message at the opening ceremony of the youth confab, in Abuja, FCT.
Inuwa, on the occasion, described Nigerian youths as a “strategic asset” to the country.
The Director-General also said the gathering was designed to create a more direct channel for young people to communicate their expectations, frustrations and ideas to government.
The Chief Executive of NITDA noted although platforms, such as X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok provide powerful avenues for young people to express themselves, the vast volume of content makes on such platforms it difficult for the government to separate genuine aspirations and policy ideas from misinformation and other forms of “online noise”.
Inuwa also said the conference would help government to “filter the noise” and identify the genuine signals within young people’s conversations.
According to him, rather than relying solely on scattered online conversations, the initiative would provide a structured avenue for government to understand what youths want across all areas of the economy.
He further stated: “It is a deliberate step to make sure your voices, your aspirations, your ideas are brought closer to the heart of national decision-making.
“This conference is also for the administration to listen to what you want government to do in terms of the economy, job creation, technology, and creating a greater Nigeria.”
Inuwa announced that NITDA, in partnership with the relevant ministry, would use technology to capture contributions from participants, while AI would be deployed to analyse and organise the submissions into thematic areas.
The Director-General of the IT sector regulatory said the resulting information would then be presented to a committee to support its understanding of the issues raised and inform the development of policy proposals.
According to him, technology would provide opportunities for remote participation, while AI would help to capture and interpret the views of a wider pool of young Nigerians.
The agency as well explained that the objective was to ensure that the process did not leave voices unheard simply because their owners were unable to attend in person.
Inuwa assured participants that their contributions would be captured, analysed and recorded, creating a trail through which their ideas could move from the conference floor into the policy process.
The NITDA Chief said: “I want to assure you that all your discussions will be captured, and the technology will keep it, and we will present it to the committee, and government will use that to turn your aspirations into ideas, ideas into proposals, proposals into policies for government to build the policies you want.’’
He equally assured that NITDA would remain involved throughout the process, promising that the agency would support the initiative “end to end”.
It would also ensure that the technology-driven engagement was conducted openly and transparently.
His message positioned the youth conference as an effort to establish a structured pathway for capturing their views and feeding them into the government’s policy considerations.
Mr. Ayodele Olawande, Honourable Minister for Youth Development, led the dignitaries who graced the opening ceremony. They included the Director General of the NYSC, Brigadier-General Olakunle Nafiu; the National President of NANS, Akinteye Hafeez; the academia; and the representatives of Commissioners of Youth Development from the 36 States of the federation.
NITDA stated the National Youth Conference 2026 is a multi-stage national engagement around six broad areas of governance and political participation; entrepreneurship and job creation; climate action and energy transition; education and future-ready skills; technology and digital innovation; and security and social cohesion.
The agency explained that the youth engagement platform was designed to draw participation from young Nigerians across the country’s 360 Federal constituencies, the six geopolitical zones, and the diaspora.
It added that the six geopolitical zones would hold dedicated virtual sessions for 12 days from October 5–17, 2026, with technical support from NITDA.
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