Kaduna Targets Adolescent Pregnancy, Youth Investment as Population Pressures Mount
By Alex Uangbaoje, Kaduna
Kaduna State has intensified efforts to tackle rising adolescent pregnancy and prepare for the demands of its rapidly growing youth population, as government officials and development partners warned that investing in young people is critical to the state’s future.
The commitment was made at the 2026 World Population Day Media Briefing, organised by the Kaduna State Planning and Budget Commission, the National Population Commission (NPC), and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The event focused on the global theme: “Realizing the hopes and aspirations of young people: Today and for the future.”
At the briefing, Kaduna State Commissioner for Planning and Budget, Mukhtar Ahmed, said the administration of Governor Uba Sani has made addressing adolescent pregnancy and supporting vulnerable young people a major priority.
He disclosed that the state has earmarked ₦1.5 billion under the ₦10 billion Social Protection Programme in the 2026 budget to support out-of-school adolescent girls through skills acquisition, empowerment and livelihood initiatives.
According to him, many cases of adolescent pregnancy are linked to insecurity, particularly in communities affected by banditry and displacement, where girls become more vulnerable to abuse and are forced out of school.
“We have established three modern skills acquisition centres across the state’s three senatorial districts to equip young people, especially girls, with employable skills and improve their economic opportunities,” Ahmed said.
He added that the Ministry of Human Services and Social Development had been directed to intensify advocacy and interventions aimed at reducing adolescent pregnancy and increasing school enrolment among girls.
The commissioner also defended the state’s budget implementation record, explaining that funding for sectors such as education had been affected by emergency spending arising from security challenges, including the Tudun Biri bombing and mass abductions in parts of the state.
“Without security, children cannot go to school and people cannot access healthcare. Sometimes government has to redirect resources to address emergencies,” he said, expressing optimism that improved security would enable stronger implementation of the 2026 budget.
Speaking at the event, UNFPA Kaduna Office Programme Manager, Dr. Elvis Evborein, described Kaduna’s youthful population as both a challenge and an opportunity.
He noted that more than 60 per cent of the state’s population is made up of young people, stressing that strategic investments in education, healthcare and employment would determine whether the state benefits from a demographic dividend or faces worsening unemployment, insecurity and poverty.
“We cannot afford to leave young people behind. Without deliberate investment, population growth can become a burden rather than an asset,” he said.
Dr. Evborein commended Kaduna State for prioritising population data and development planning, describing the state as one of Nigeria’s leading examples in the use of demographic statistics for policy formulation.
He urged governments at all levels to convert population data into concrete actions that improve the lives of citizens, particularly adolescents and young people in underserved communities.
Also speaking, the Kaduna State Director of the National Population Commission (NPC), Maryam Aliyu, said population issues are fundamentally development issues and called for sustained investments in data, rights and opportunities.
She identified youth development, reproductive health, urbanisation, gender equality and quality population data as the major issues shaping Nigeria’s demographic future.
Aliyu stressed that with over 60 per cent of Nigeria’s population below the age of 30, investments in education, skills development and decent employment are essential to harnessing the country’s demographic dividend.
She added that access to quality healthcare, voluntary family planning and maternal health services would enable individuals to make informed decisions that benefit families and communities.
The NPC director also warned that rapid urbanisation continues to place increasing pressure on housing, water supply and other public services, making reliable population data indispensable for effective planning.
She said the commission would continue working with traditional and religious leaders, schools, health facilities and development partners to ensure that underserved communities, particularly adolescents in rural and hard-to-reach areas, are not left behind.
The discussions come against the backdrop of the 2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, which found that 29.9 per cent of girls aged 15 to 19 in Kaduna have experienced pregnancy, highlighting the urgency of interventions aimed at protecting adolescent girls, expanding educational opportunities and improving reproductive health services.
Participants at the briefing agreed that Kaduna’s growing youth population could become either a powerful engine for economic transformation or a source of mounting social and economic pressures, depending on the investments made today.
As Kaduna confronts rapid population growth, stakeholders stressed that the state’s ability to convert its youthful population into a productive workforce will depend on sustained investments in education, health, skills development, gender equality and evidence-based planning.
The consensus was clear: Kaduna’s demographic future will be shaped not by the size of its population, but by the choices and investments made today.
