The Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement (YIAGA) said that Nigerian youths are crucial in the nation’s fight against corruption, as they are the demographic that suffers the most from the effects of corruption.
The youth-centred nonprofit organisation disclosed that the country had lost N582 billion to corruption in 61 years.
Stating this was YIAGA Programme Manager, Cynthia Mbamalu, in Abuja at the National Debate Competition on Anti-Corruption.
Mbamalu referred to a report by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS) that stated youths were often inclined to give or receive bribes based on visible patterns of corruption in the country.
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Mbamalu said, “When this data is placed side-by-side with the high rate of youth unemployment and underemployment which is 42percent and 21percent in a country which has millions of young people finishing their studies with no job prospects, it further increases the pressure on them to offer bribes in order to secure jobs.”
“As such, it has become important to engage young Nigerians on how to fight corruption and enshrine integrity, accountability, and transparency into the fabric of our society, and in our public and private sectors.
“As the group that suffers most from the effects of corruption, young people can be instrumental in the fight against corruption in Nigeria and using peer influence to spread values of transparency and accountability.”
