The Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Media and Publicity, Mr. Gboyega Akosile, has urged Nigerians, particularly the youth, to embrace technology and use it positively for skill acquisition and entrepreneurship.

He said the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration is committed to empowering the youth, and the government in the last five years has empowered thousands of young Lagosians in different sectors.

Akosile spoke during the Empower Lagos Summit on “Mastering the Art of Business Restructuring and Profitability,” organised by Next Big Deal Hub, held at Tolulope Odugbemi Hall, University of Lagos (UNILAG) on Saturday.

He said: “I want the youth to know that the world is changing at a very high speed, courtesy of technology. Technology is changing the world so fast. We have to adopt technology. But the youth must be responsible with the use of technology.

“They should try as much as possible to use it in positive ways. Let us be responsible and responsive to what the needs of society really are. I believe Nigeria will certainly become a better place in no time.”

Speaking on Governor Sanwo-Olu’s administration efforts towards the youth in line with the THEMES+ development agenda, Akosile said:

“Lagos State Government has done a lot for the youth, especially in the area of entrepreneurship, skills acquisition, creative industry, technology and innovation.”

“Governor Sanwo-Olu also created the Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy, where a lot of young Lagosians applied, and 30 of them were shortlisted for the first edition. The 30 of them will be graduating in the next two or three months.”

“We have already begun the process of bringing in the new batch for the Lateef Jakande Leadership Academy. These are areas we are using one person, two persons to change the society, courtesy of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.”

Speaking during a panel session, the Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to Governor Sanwo-Olu, Mr. Gboyega Akosile; former Commissioner for Youth in Oyo State, Dr. Seun Fakorode; founder of Guguru Media, Mr. Mautin Olorunleke and CEO of Zeeh of Africa, Mr. David Adeleke, charged youth to develop themselves, maximise social media, collaborate, partner, create value, and be strategic.

The Founder of Next Big Deal Hub, Bukola Jaiyeola, said the programme was organised to empower the youth to support their businesses and expose them to business opportunities they can tap into.

“We want to build entrepreneurs from scratch and scale up already existing entrepreneurs for global vision. We are working with some of the speakers to train some of the participants that are interested in their area of expertise.”