The monthly leadership inspiring and mentorship initiative of the Center for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), better termed as ILERIS (Inspiring Leadership Reflection Series) has featured Dr Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, the Hon. Commissioner, Ministry of Agriculture Kano state as the personality for the month of October. Every month CITAD invites a personality who has skills, experiences and achievements that can be emulated by its staff and other youths with a view to shaping their lives and their commitments so that they excel in their numerous endavours. Participants normally listen to the guests make their presentations about their lives experiences, successes, challenges, opportunities and later on interact and deliberate in order to explore for themselves certain strengths, advantages as well take caution against failures and obstacles.

Giving an opening remark, the Executive Director of Center for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), Dr. Yunusa Zakari Ya’u said “the center has over the years been focusing on youths development programs and we thought that one of the ways you can develop young people is to get people who have rich experience to share with young people their successes, problems, principles, the ways in which they tackle problems when they arise, lessons they would have learned as they grow up and so forth, so that young people in particular can be inspired to want to go and even surpass people that they listen to, that is the reason we get someone with credible history and experience to come and talk about himself after which the participants ask questions’’.

In his presentation, Dr Gawuna observed that it is a great honour for him to be invited to directly interact with young people and hopes his biography will inspire the participants. The 49 year old commissioner is a biochemist by profession who has eventually ventured into agricultural activities and politics, being a staunch sports lover he is presently the National President of Youths Sports Federation which was established back in 1965. He said “as a child I hated school but my parents insisted in ensuring that I go to school, today I realized the idea behind that, I can still remember two things my father taught me, one is to be as truthful as possible in whatever I do, and the second is to be as helpful as possible’’. He said the patent medicine store that his father established inspired his brother to become a graduate of pharmacy from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria while he graduated from Usman Danfodio University Sokoto as a Biochemist, which simply became a large family business.

After working with Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, Kano state Hospitals Management Board as Lab technologist at Nasarawa Hospital, Gawuna’s interest in business led him and a friend into establishing a logistics company that deals with cargo and technical assistance on aircraft called Millennium Aviation. He later succumbed to pressure and finally became a politician which made him Nasarawa Local Government chairman for eight years and commissioner of agriculture in the previous administration, the position present administration also appointed him since its inception.

Dr Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna has energized the participants with several inspirational experiences and entertained many questions, he said “faith, believe and the strength of your will always get you to where you want to be, in as much as you try to be as honest as possible”.

The inspiring leadership reflection series ended with a presentation of publications of CITAD to the guest by human resources officer of the organization Malam Ado Shehu Yakasai, and a vote of thanks by training coordinator Malam Ahmad Abdullahi Yakasai who advised the participants to practicalise the lessons they learned from the interactive session. Participants at the event included staff of CITAD, regional manager of Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) and other staff, Manager Environmental Registration Council of Nigeria, Northwest University, Federal University Dutse, United Action for Democracy, Northwest University Students for Peace, Kurmawa Youth Development Association, Harlem Engineering, Mufarka, Tudun Yola Youth for Peace, KAYCAD and many other young people.