He said the initiative, Renewed Hope Labour Employment and Empowerment Programme (LEEP), is conceived as a comprehensive suite of interventions at job creation by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Faced by increasing unemployment and underemployment rates which have led to mass exodus of young Nigerians abroad, President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday announced that his administration will later in October launch an initiative aimed at facilitating the creation of 2.5 million jobs.

The Nigerian leader spoke in a nationwide address to mark Nigeria's 64th independence anniversary.

Mr Tinubu said the initiative, Renewed Hope Labour Employment and Empowerment Programme (LEEP), is conceived as a comprehensive suite of interventions at job creation by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.

The President added that the initiative is "aimed at facilitating the creation of 2.5 million jobs, directly and indirectly, on an annual incremental basis whilst simultaneously ensuring the welfare and safety of workers across the country."

Other initiatives

The Nigerian leader also listed other youth-centric programmes by his administration to include the implementation of the students loan scheme which provides cheap loans to our students to pursue their tertiary educational dreams and the 3 million Technical Talents programme (3MTT) of the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, aimed at building Nigeria's technical talent backbone.

Mr Tinubu has also announced the convocation of a 30-day National Youth Conference. He said after due consultation, the composition and schedule of activities would be announced.