CHURCH-BASED MUSIC PROGRAMME AND YOUTH EMPOWERMENT IN NIGERIA: LESSONS FROM MOUNTAIN OF FIRE AND MIRACLE MINISTRIES, LAGOS

Abstract

Over the years, many Christian religious institutions have been part of the interventions in combating unemployment among youths in the country by initiating several empowerment schemes through skill acquisition in diverse vocations. Despite the growing interest of young people in the creation and consumption of music in our contemporary society, the inclusion of music in the various skill acquisition programme has been neglected. Therefore, this paper seeks to highlight the remarkable contributions of Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries (MFM), Lagos, in the development of the human socio-economic capacity of the youths in the church through her various musical skill acquisition programme. The study adopts a qualitative research design and data will be content analyzed. This article recommends that other churches should invest in artistic skills acquisition programmes–specifically music, as a productive and sustainable form of empowerment among youths in Nigeria.