New Telegraph

Why I appointed many youths in my govt, by El-Rufai

Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, yesterday said that he values the inputs of young people in governance and that is why many of them have been appointed and vested with positions of responsibility in his administration.
The governor gave the explanation at the unveiling of the third set of Kashim Ibrahim Fellows at the Government House, Kaduna.
He said his administration was “persuaded that sustained mentorship is an effective path to raising effective leaders and public servants.
‘’In 2017, we decided to institutionalise a programme to contribute to building youth capacity through intellectual stimulation and practical exposure to the workings and challenges of public service.
‘’We established the Kashim Ibrahim Fellowship Programme as a deliberate investment in building leadership capacity among our youths,’’ the governor further explained.
El-Rufai recalled that; ” The first set of Fellows resumed in August 2018, after a selection process that was based on merit. By the time of their graduation in July 2019, these 16 fellows, from all over Nigeria, had impressed us with their energy, zeal, talent and ability.’
The governor further said that the second set of Fellows resumed in August 2019 and had lived up to the hopes that inspired the fellowship.
‘’A significant chunk of their programme time has fallen within the uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic, but they have adapted magnificently,’’ he reminded.
The governor also said that the first two sets had already set high standards for the 16 fellows that were selected by the Governing Board as the third cohort.
‘’Contrary to our plans, we are unable to expand the annual intake of fellows to 24 this year due to the disruptions unleashed by COVID-19,’’ he lamented.
Governor El-Rufai, who said that the administration looked forward to welcoming the new fellows next month, expressed the hope that ‘’they will further raise the standard of the fellowship.’’
The governor extended gratitude to members of the Governing Board ‘’for lending their time and resources to support our effort of helping to nurture the future leaders for our country.’’
He also acknowledged the work of the steering committee, comprising some senior staff, who were involved in the selection process.

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