Gombe, ITF lift 500 persons with skills acquisition

The Gombe State government in collaboration with the Bauchi Area Office of the Industrial Trust Fund (ITF) has trained 500 youths and women in different technical and vocational skills under the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP).

Director General of the ITF, Joseph Ari, who was represented by the Director of Technical and Vocational Skills, IshiyaKu Shehu, disclosed this in Gombe at the closing ceremony of the programme.

“Since its inception, the programme has empowered over 93,100 youths with various skills for employability and entrepreneurship. “We are tracking and monitoring the system and over 70 per cent of the beneficiaries of earlier phases of the programme have either been gainfully employed or are successful entrepreneurs,” he said.

Ari said Federal Government’s commitment to skills acquisition was informed by a bleak future that lies in wait for young Nigerians if urgent and proactive steps were not taken to empower the youth and other vulnerable groups.

“By the year 2050, according to a projection, Nigeria’s population will be 500 million and of this number majority will be youth. As much as the youth bulge is an advantage, it becomes a huge disadvantage, especially when they are not meaningfully engaged,” he added.

He urged the trainees to take advantage of the training to strive towards self-employment, adding that to achieve that they must be passionate, committed and dedicated to their chosen trade and vocations, which is the only way for them to succeed in life.

Also speaking, the state Commissioner for Youth Empowerment, Farouk Yarma, represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Adamu Kala, said the participants would soon be given starter kits to set up their own businesses.