As Nigeria marks its 66th Independence Anniversary, the Young Innovators of Nigeria (YIN) has called for a shift from a job-seeking economy to one in which young people scale up homegrown solutions.
The Chief Executive Officer of YIN, Joy Buba, made the call in an interview with reporters on Monday in Abuja.
Buba said Nigeria’s 66th anniversary should go beyond celebrating past achievements to interrogating the kind of future being built for the next generation.
She noted that since Nigeria became independent in 1960, the country had recorded significant achievements in institution building, education, infrastructure, the technology ecosystem and democratic governance.
According to her, the country now has a growing community of young people building solutions in artificial intelligence, fintech, agriculture, health, energy, climate technology, education and mobility.
Buba commended the Federal Government for identifying economic reforms, infrastructure, energy, digital skills and enterprise development as priorities for the next phase of growth.
She, however, said celebrating achievements should not prevent stakeholders from acknowledging the work that remained to be done.
“For me, one of Nigeria’s biggest opportunities is moving from an economy where young people primarily seek jobs to an economy where young people can build, commercialise and scale up solutions.
“We have the talent, we have the ideas, we have young Nigerians solving real problems. What we need is a stronger bridge between innovation and the market,” she said.
Buba said government had a critical role to play in creating an enabling environment through reliable and affordable energy, digital infrastructure, research and development, access to funding and procurement opportunities.
She said the conversation should move from training young people to addressing what happens after training. These include market access, prototype-to-product transition, investment and government patronage of locally developed solutions.
Buba said YIN was focused on connecting young innovators to opportunities, communities, markets and partnerships where their ideas could create economic value.
That focus, she said, informed the organisation’s upcoming Abuja Tech Week 2026, scheduled from November 24 to 26 at the Abuja Velodrome, Moshood Abiola Stadium, with the theme “Energising Smart Mobility: Powering Cities of the Future.”
According to her, the event will bring together government, investors, technology companies, innovators, startups and ecosystem stakeholders to discuss smart mobility, energy, digital infrastructure and smart cities.
She stressed that Nigeria’s independence story should evolve into an innovation story in which the creativity and resilience of young Nigerians drive economic growth.
