Positive Youth Development Programmes and Civic Engagement Among Out-of-School Youth in Kaduna State

This study evaluates the effectiveness of structured positive youth development programmes in promoting civic engagement and prosocial behaviour among out-of-school youth in Kaduna State, North West Nigeria. Kaduna State faces significant youth development challenges, including high numbers of out-of-school adolescents who are disconnected from formal educational, vocational, and civic institutions. This research employed a programme evaluation design using a quasi-experimental pre-post comparison of 140 out-of-school youth aged 15 to 24 participating in a Positive Youth Development programme delivered across two non-governmental organisation sites in Kaduna metropolis, compared with 130 matched non-participants. The programme offered life skills training, mentorship, community service projects, and vocational orientation over 24 weeks. Civic engagement was assessed using the Civic Engagement Scale adapted for Nigerian youth, and prosocial behaviour using the Prosocial Behaviour Questionnaire. Results indicate significant post-programme increases in civic knowledge, community participation intentions, and prosocial behaviour in participants compared to controls. Programme completion rates of 78 percent and high participant satisfaction scores further support feasibility. Mentorship quality was the strongest predictor of positive change across all outcome domains. The study recommends that the Kaduna State government invest in scaling positive youth development models through community development agencies, prioritising the inclusion of out-of-school youth in structured developmental programmes. Keywords: positive youth development, civic engagement, out-of-school youth, Kaduna State, prosocial behaviour.