Joseph Kruzich, Public Affairs Officer of the U.S Consulate in Lagos, says Nigerian youths are active, dynamic and difference makers, especially in the private sector.
Kruzich, who described the youth as the future of the country, spoke on Wednesday, at a reunion and debriefing conference organised by the consulate for the 2022 Mandela Washington Fellows.
The fellows recently completed their fellowship programmes at various prestigious institutes and universities in the U.S.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Mandela Washington Fellowship was established in 2014 by the U.S. government.
It is to empower young African leaders in Sub-Saharan Africa through coursework, leadership training, and networking opportunities.
Kruzich said that since its inception, over 5800 young leaders in Sub-Saharan Africa had gone through the programme, with about 10 per cent of them from Nigeria.
He said the six-week long programme conducted at major American institutions and universities aimed to equip young leaders with skills and knowledge.
This, he said, would help them play positive roles in Nigeria’s economic development, and strengthen its democracy, organisations of civil society as well as the educational system.
“To measure the performance of fellows, first and foremost, we have reunion concerts and try to keep in touch with them.
“We also help them organise into groups and to organise impactful projects that they can engage in when they get back to Nigeria, sometimes with our funding or with funding from Nigerian organisations.
“We would, therefore, be looking forward to seeing fellows engage in activities that would broaden their network, community service, and mentoring of young people in Nigeria,” he said.
Julia McKay, Cultural Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, said the programme was not just a trip to U.S. but a one year fellowship.
McKay said that fellows became part of a network of more than 10,000 Nigerians.
“Fellows support each other and we provide opportunities for them in the future including professional development and funding for their projects.”
The cultural affairs officer said that the fellowship continued beyond the trip, noting that new fellows would connect not only with those in Nigeria but also with other Mandela Washington Fellows across the continent.
McKay said they would create networks that work together to support projects and move Nigeria forward.
One of the fellows, Mayokun Iyaomolere, an environmentalist and Founder, Plogging Nigeria Club, said the fellowship was a beautiful and wholesome experience for him.
Iyaomolere said he gained new knowledge through different instructional methods than those he was used to.
“One of the things I learnt is how to structure NGOs, and that is something I have started implementing and applying to my organisation,” he said. (NAN)
