The Federal Government has launched a free nationwide financial literacy and inclusion training programme designed to equip 10 million Nigerians with essential skills needed to thrive in the country’s expanding digital economy.
The initiative was announced in a statement issued by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications. According to the statement, the programme places strong emphasis on women and young people, providing them with practical knowledge in financial management, digital skills, investment awareness, and sustainable wealth creation.
The training is being implemented by the Office of the Vice President through the Presidential Committee on Economic and Financial Inclusion (PreCEFI), which is chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima. It is backed by a strategic partnership with six leading professional bodies: the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS), National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA), Chartered Risk Management Institute (CRMI), and the Nigeria Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NIIE).
Vice President Shettima described the programme, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Federal Government and the professional bodies, as a long-term national investment in human capacity. He said inclusive growth depends not only on infrastructure but on strong human, institutional, and ethical foundations.
He stressed that true financial inclusion goes beyond access to services, noting that competence, trust, and capability are critical. According to him, the partnership creates a framework to pool professional expertise in advancing financial inclusion through capacity building, digital transformation, youth empowerment, advocacy, and support for small and medium-scale practitioners.
Shettima further emphasized that Nigeria’s much-talked-about demographic advantage can only be realised if young people are properly equipped with relevant skills and strong ethical grounding to compete in a fast-changing digital economy, adding that empowering women and youth remains central to the programme’s objectives.