The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), has urged Nigerian youths to embrace skills acquisition and empowerment opportunities as a critical safeguard against substance abuse and other social vices.
Marwa gave the charge on Thursday while speaking as the Special Guest of Honour at the launch of a youth empowerment and skills acquisition programme organised by Grassroots Bridge Builders, a non-governmental organisation, in Abuja.
He said programmes that equip young people with practical skills and economic opportunities are essential to preventing drug abuse, unemployment, poverty and crime, stressing that government efforts alone are insufficient to address the challenges facing the country’s youth population.
By training and empowering 10,000 young Nigerians, Marwa noted, the initiative directly supports the administration of President Bola Tinubu’s renewed hope agenda on youth empowerment, job creation and social inclusion.
“Training and empowering 10,000 young Nigerians through practical skills is not just an NGO activity; it is direct support to government efforts, complementing national programmes aimed at reducing unemployment, poverty, drug abuse, and general crimes,” he said, adding that such initiatives deserve national recognition.
NDLEA boss said the programme goes beyond charity, describing it as a long-term investment in capacity building, character development and prevention of drug abuse among youths.
He called on other non-governmental organisations, civil society groups, faith-based organisations, community leaders, the private sector and well-meaning Nigerians to emulate the initiative, insisting that the fight against drug abuse and related crimes is a collective responsibility.
“The fight against drug abuse and associated crimes is everybody’s business,” Marwa said. “Government alone cannot solve all of society’s problems.”
He also urged stakeholders to partner with the NDLEA in designing and implementing programmes that give young people skills, dignity, purpose and a sense of belonging, noting that prevention works best when communities, organisations and government collaborate.
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Addressing the youths present at the event, Marwa said they should not see themselves as liabilities but as key contributors to national development.
“You are not a problem to be managed; you are a solution to be empowered. Your talents, creativity and resilience are needed to build a stronger, safer and more prosperous Nigeria,” he said, urging them to shun drugs and invest in their personal development.
Marwa commended Grassroots Bridge Builders for prioritising youth empowerment as a sustainable pathway to securing Nigeria’s future and pledged NDLEA’s support for all genuine, non-partisan initiatives that promote youth development, skills acquisition and drug-free communities in line with national objectives.
