Nigeria is facing a growing youth crisis as unemployment, drug abuse, poverty and lack of access to education threaten to worsen insecurity and other social problems, a former student of Bauchi College of Arts and Science has warned.
A member of the BACAS Old Students Association, Mr Daniel Musa Mohammed, raised the alarm while delivering a lecture at the association’s Grand Convention and Golden Jubilee Celebration at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.
Mohammed said the situation was particularly worrying in the North-East, where millions of young people remained unemployed, underemployed or disengaged from productive activities.
He said urgent measures were needed to prevent the growing population of idle youths from becoming vulnerable to criminality and drug abuse.
“The net effect is a large army of idle youths with high dependency ratio, low investment capacity and high tendency towards social vices such as violence, drug abuse, gangsterism and crime,” Mohammed said.
He cited figures from the National Youth Survey 2025, saying about 11.3 million people aged between 15 and 35 lived in the North-East.
According to him, females accounted for 52.8 per cent of the region’s youth population, while 42.2 per cent had never attended school.
Mohammed attributed the high number of out-of-school children and youths in parts of the region to conflict, displacement and humanitarian challenges, particularly in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states.
He also expressed concern over the growing incidence of drug abuse among women, both married and unmarried, urging stakeholders to pay greater attention to the trend.
The traditional title holder, Kagaman Deba in Gombe State, warned that prolonged youth unemployment and economic frustration could fuel social unrest.
He cited the Arab Spring as an example of how youth unemployment and economic hardship could contribute to instability.
Mohammed also referenced a British Generation Next report which, according to him, warned of the possibility of social unrest in Nigeria arising from widespread youth joblessness.
He said the economic consequences of youth unemployment included reduced productivity, lower Gross Domestic Product, declining consumer spending and a long-term reduction in lifetime earnings.
On the social consequences, he listed armed robbery, kidnapping, militancy, protests and substance abuse.
Mohammed called for greater investment in sectors capable of absorbing young Nigerians, including agriculture, irrigation, solid minerals, oil and gas, information and communication technology, solar energy, entertainment and tourism.
He challenged members of the BACAS Old Students Association, particularly retirees, to deploy their experience, professional networks and resources towards tackling the challenges facing young Nigerians.
He also proposed dedicated committees on economic development and humanitarian activities within the association.
Reflecting on his experience at BACAS, Mohammed recalled that the institution provided students with free tuition, hostel accommodation, meals, soap and scholarships, alongside committed lecturers and adequate infrastructure.
He said the discipline and values acquired at the institution had contributed significantly to the academic and professional development of its graduates.
“The ethics we learnt in BACAS helped us in our university education and our working places. Most of us have worked for 35 years and retired,” he said.
Mohammed urged the old students to help provide the younger generation with opportunities similar to those they benefited from at BACAS.