National Value Leadership Course Participants Urged To Champion Nation-building

Participants of Batch 5 of the National Values and Leadership Course have been challenged to build resilient and adaptive organisations capable of driving national development and nation-building.

The call was made by Prof. Ayo Omotayo, Director-General of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), during the course’s closing ceremony. The programme was organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in collaboration with Tomruk and Dafuda at the NIPSS campus in Jos, Plateau State.

Represented by NIPSS director of research, Prof. Musa Umar, Prof. Omotayo emphasised that the Institute focuses on executive training, strategic leadership development, policy research, and advocacy aimed at steering Nigeria toward a better society.

“My advice to the participants is that as strategic leaders, you must think systematically. A nation is a system composed of sub-systems, including Education, Security, Agriculture, and others. As leaders, you must act ethically, which is the core focus of the National Values and Leadership Course,” he said.

He stressed that Nigeria needs leaders of integrity whose word can be trusted—leaders whose “yes” is yes and whose “no” is no. Participants were urged to extend their influence beyond their immediate operational areas to impact national development and drive progress for the country.

Speaking on the importance of national values, Prof. Mrs. Omosede Osafele, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun, said, “National values are critical not just for the nation, but for every individual who makes up that nation. A nation is nothing without its people. Reorienting each person helps shift perspectives about our responsibility to the country, and that is very important.”

Prof. Osafele described the course as timely, emphasising that transformation does not happen overnight. “We cannot stop our efforts because immediate results are not visible. One person at a time, progress is being made, whether we see it or not,” she added.

Another participant, Navy Commodore Mahmud Fana, described the training as a “renewal of hope.”

“I am very happy that the agency has put this together. The course is an eye-opener—clear, apt, and seamlessly delivered,” he said.

Meanwhile, David Akoji, Director of Special Duties, State Operation, at NOA headquarters, highlighted the nation’s ongoing search for restored values.

“Many believe our ethics and values have been eroded, and this is reflected in our daily lives and institutions. There is a need to correct this narrative,” he said, adding that previous campaigns such as Change Begins With Me, Doing the Right Thing to Transform Nigeria, and Good People, Great Nation did not yield the desired impact.

“So, we revisited our approach, analysed previous gaps, and identified what went wrong to design a course that addresses these shortcomings,” Akoji explained.