From His Personally Convened April 2024 Stakeholders' Meeting to the Training and Equipping of 75 Youths, Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi Demonstrates Leadership That Delivers Results
The story of the ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme cannot be properly told without acknowledging the vision, personal initiative, sacrifice and exceptional commitment of Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi, Asiwaju of Ijesaland, who conceived, initiated and personally brought together critical stakeholders to chart a practical course for the socioeconomic development of Ijesaland.
What eventually became a life-changing ICT empowerment opportunity for 75 Ijesa youths began with a deliberate effort by Fasuyi to move community development beyond individual aspirations, isolated interventions and mere discussions into coordinated action with measurable outcomes.
On Thursday, April 18, 2024, Fasuyi personally convened and hosted a landmark stakeholders' meeting at his Oke Baba Okuta Villa, Adebayo Abon, Imo, Ilesa.
The gathering, organised under the auspices of the Ijesa Community Development Assembly (ICDA), was conceived as a platform for bringing together traditional institutions, political administrators, community development organisations, private-sector operators and development practitioners to harness resources, share experiences and collectively address the pressing development challenges confronting Ijesaland.
It was not simply another gathering of prominent personalities. It was a purposeful assembly initiated by a man determined to turn the collective strength of Ijesaland into practical solutions for its people.
FASUYI BRINGS IJESA STAKEHOLDERS TOGETHER FOR DEVELOPMENT
The meeting attracted an impressive gathering of stakeholders, including chairmen of the 12 local government administrative areas in Ijesaland and high-ranking traditional rulers representing the Ijesa North, Ijesa South and Ijesa Central Traditional Councils.
Also present were prominent leaders of Pan-Ijesa organisations, including Chief Akin Akinola, Chairman of the Ijesa Elders Forum; Professor Olu Obi, President of Egbe Atunluse Ile-Ijesa; and Dr. Adigun Adewoye, President of the Coalition of Ijesa Societies.
Representatives of the Ijesa Youth Forum and other youth organisations were equally involved.
Specially invited development practitioners and organisations included the Leventis Foundation School, Ijesaland Geriatric Centre, RLG Communications, National Health Insurance Authority and Communitywide Foodbank.
The discussions covered critical areas such as security, commerce, industry, infrastructure, mining and environmental protection, agriculture and food security, healthcare, water supply, youth development and employment generation.
Fasuyi's central message was unmistakable: Ijesaland would achieve greater progress through collaboration, shared responsibility and coordinated development efforts than through isolated initiatives.
According to him, rather than pursuing the development of Ijesaland individually and independently, stakeholders stood to achieve greater benefits and more meaningful results by pooling their strengths and resources.
That philosophy of collective action provided the foundation upon which the ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme was built.
HOW FASUYI'S INITIATIVE PRODUCED THE ICDA-RLG PARTNERSHIP
One of the significant outcomes of the April 18 stakeholders' meeting was the presentation made by the Chairman of RLG Communications, Alhaji Rasak Animasahun.
During the meeting, Animasahun highlighted opportunities available to young people in Information and Communications Technology, particularly mobile phone repairs, computer repairs and digital set-top box assembly.
He explained that equipping young people with practical ICT skills would improve their prospects for self-employment, reduce unemployment and contribute positively to socioeconomic development.
As part of RLG's commitment to community development, Animasahun announced the organisation's willingness to provide free three-month ICT training for 100 Ijesa youths.
However, Fasuyi recognised that providing technical training alone would not be sufficient to guarantee meaningful empowerment.
For the intervention to produce lasting results, beneficiaries would require financial support during training and access to the tools necessary to establish themselves after graduation.
This was where Fasuyi's practical leadership and personal commitment became particularly evident.
Rather than merely applauding RLG's offer, he immediately moved to address the financial and material challenges that could prevent the proposed intervention from achieving its objectives.
BEYOND PROMISES: FASUYI COMMITS TO MONTHLY STIPENDS AND STARTER TOOLS
At the meeting, Fasuyi announced that ICDA would provide a monthly stipend of ₦10,000 to each participating Ijesa youth throughout the three-month training period.
The commitment was intended to ease the financial burden on trainees and encourage sustained participation in the programme.
He also proposed that beneficiaries should receive technical equipment upon completing their training, thereby enabling them to put their newly acquired skills into immediate practice.
To demonstrate that the proposal was more than a statement of intention, Fasuyi personally initiated fundraising for the procurement of technical tools.
Each set of equipment was estimated to cost ₦100,000.
Through his mobilisation efforts, commitments were secured for 45 sets of technical tools, valued at a combined ₦4.5 million.
The contributions were as follows:
- Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi: 10 sets of technical tools.
- Yeye Asiwaju Dr. Olubisi Fasuyi: 10 sets.
- Chairman, Communitywide Foodbank: 10 sets.
- Alhaji Rasak Animasahun, Chairman of RLG Adulawo: 10 sets.
- Managing Director, RLG Adulawo: 5 sets.
This immediate response demonstrated the effectiveness of Fasuyi's approach to community development: identify a problem, assemble capable stakeholders, secure commitments and create a practical framework for implementation.
Fasuyi further encouraged traditional rulers across Ijesaland to mobilise eligible young people within their respective communities to participate in the programme.
His intervention ensured that the proposed ICT empowerment initiative was not left as an attractive idea discussed at a stakeholders' meeting but was given a clear direction towards implementation.
FROM THE INITIAL VISION TO 75 TRAINED AND EQUIPPED IJESA YOUTHS
The initiative subsequently developed into the ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme, through which 75 Ijesa youths successfully completed specialised training in ICT, telecommunications, hardware assembly, repair and maintenance.
The beneficiaries were drawn from the six Local Government Areas of Ijesaland, with opportunities extended to unemployed graduates, diploma holders and secondary school leavers interested in acquiring marketable technical skills.
The three-month programme went beyond basic computer literacy.
Participants received theoretical instruction and practical exposure in four major areas:
1. ICT fundamentals.
2. Telecommunications technologies.
3. Hardware assembly.
4. Equipment repair and maintenance.
Training took place at an RLG facility, where beneficiaries had the opportunity to work in a structured technical environment and develop skills relevant to modern technology services.
Importantly, the training was provided at no cost to the beneficiaries.
EMPOWERMENT THAT DID NOT END WITH CERTIFICATES
One of the distinguishing features of the programme was its emphasis on equipping beneficiaries to practise their acquired skills after graduation.
Many vocational training initiatives end with the presentation of certificates, leaving participants without the equipment or financial capacity required to establish themselves.
Fasuyi had identified this challenge from the very beginning.
It was precisely why he insisted, during the April 2024 stakeholders' meeting, that technical tools must form part of the programme's exit strategy.
According to the stewardship record, all 75 graduands eventually received equipment fully paid for by ICDA.
This achievement reflected the practical implementation of the vision articulated when Fasuyi first brought the stakeholders together.
The beneficiaries were therefore not merely trained; they were provided with an opportunity to translate their knowledge into productive activities.
With their newly acquired skills and equipment, they could explore opportunities in mobile phone repairs, computer maintenance, telecommunications services, electronics and related small-scale enterprises.
For the beneficiaries, the intervention created a potential pathway towards financial independence.
For Ijesaland, it represented an investment in a generation of technically skilled young people capable of contributing to the local economy.
LEADERSHIP BY EXAMPLE: THE FASUYI APPROACH
The ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme provides an illustration of Fasuyi's leadership philosophy, particularly his conviction that community development requires more than good intentions and public declarations.
His role extended across the different stages of the initiative.
He conceived the broader stakeholders' engagement, initiated the meeting, personally hosted the participants, mobilised traditional and community leaders, encouraged institutional collaboration and helped secure the financial commitments required to support the intervention.
He also demonstrated personal commitment by pledging to fund 10 sets of technical equipment, while his wife, Yeye Asiwaju Dr. Olubisi Fasuyi, equally pledged another 10 sets.
Together, their commitments represented 20 of the first 45 sets of equipment pledged at the stakeholders' meeting.
This was leadership demonstrated through personal example, resource mobilisation and a determination to see development initiatives produce tangible benefits.
Although the programme was implemented through the collective efforts of ICDA, RLG Communications and other supporting stakeholders, Fasuyi's foundational role in bringing these interests together deserves particular recognition.
His contribution illustrates how purposeful leadership can transform the willingness of different organisations to assist their communities into coordinated programmes with identifiable beneficiaries.
VISION: PREPARING IJESA YOUTHS FOR A TECHNOLOGY-DRIVEN FUTURE
Another important dimension of the initiative was Fasuyi's recognition of the growing importance of technology in employment generation and economic development.
At a time when traditional employment opportunities are increasingly insufficient to accommodate the number of young people entering the labour market, technical and digital skills offer alternative pathways to productive engagement.
By supporting training in ICT, telecommunications and equipment maintenance, the programme sought to prepare beneficiaries for opportunities in a changing economy.
It also encouraged entrepreneurship by giving young people practical skills that could support the establishment of small businesses.
The intervention consequently aligned youth empowerment with the broader development needs of Ijesaland.
INTEGRITY, TRANSPARENCY AND SHARED RESPONSIBILITY
The programme also demonstrated the importance of building development partnerships around clearly defined responsibilities.
RLG Communications provided the technical training platform, while ICDA coordinated the community development intervention and supported the provision of equipment.
The participation of traditional rulers, community organisations and private-sector stakeholders helped connect the initiative to the wider Ijesa community.
This collaborative arrangement encouraged shared ownership and strengthened confidence in the programme.
For Fasuyi, the involvement of multiple stakeholders was not incidental.
It was central to the development philosophy that inspired the April 18, 2024 meeting.
By encouraging institutions and individuals to contribute according to their capacities, he demonstrated that meaningful community development need not depend entirely on government intervention.
ACCOUNTABILITY THROUGH MEASURABLE RESULTS
The ultimate value of a development initiative lies not merely in the promises made at its commencement but in the results it produces.
In this respect, the ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme recorded identifiable outcomes.
A total of 75 young people completed the three-month technical training programme.
The beneficiaries acquired practical skills in ICT and telecommunications-related activities.
Each graduand also received equipment intended to facilitate the application of those skills.
These outcomes provide a measurable basis for assessing the programme's contribution to youth capacity development.
They also demonstrate the progression from an idea conceived and promoted by Fasuyi to a coordinated intervention implemented through institutional partnership.
A MILESTONE IN FASUYI'S DECADE OF STEWARDSHIP
As Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi's 10-year stewardship in community development is examined, the ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme stands out as one of the 25 milestones associated with his decade of service.
Its significance extends beyond the number of beneficiaries trained.
The programme tells a broader story about the importance of initiative, sacrifice, collaboration and sustained commitment to community development.
It began with a leader who recognised the need to bring Ijesaland's diverse stakeholders together.
It progressed through a meeting he personally conceived, convened and hosted.
It gained momentum through partnerships and financial commitments he helped mobilise.
And it culminated in the training and equipping of 75 young Ijesa people with skills intended to improve their economic prospects.
While the contributions of RLG Communications, ICDA and other stakeholders remain essential to the success of the intervention, the pioneering role played by Fasuyi in creating the platform for collaboration must not be overlooked.
After all, there is a difference between attending a development meeting and conceiving the vision that brings the meeting into existence. There is also a difference between supporting an idea and taking responsibility for mobilising the people, partnerships and resources required to make that idea work.
In the case of the ICDA-RLG Youth ICT Empowerment Programme, Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi demonstrated both.
His contribution reinforces a fundamental lesson in community leadership: sustainable development becomes possible when vision is matched with initiative, personal sacrifice, collective participation and measurable action.
From a stakeholders' meeting at his Ilesa residence on April 18, 2024, to the empowerment of 75 Ijesa youths, Fasuyi's initiative stands as an example of how one man's determination to unite stakeholders can help create opportunities for an entire community.
That is the enduring significance of this milestone in his decade of stewardship: a vision conceived, stakeholders assembled, resources mobilised, and opportunities created for the next generation of Ijesaland.
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