The Oyo State Government is set to train no fewer than 500 unemployed graduates to acquire leadership skills, financial sustenance abilities, entrepreneurship, and business proposal writing skills among other requisite skills.
The training under a programme tagged Omituntun 2.0 Enterprise Skill Development Programme, will see no fewer than 15 youths selected from each of the 33 local government areas.
According to state Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Miss Wasilat Adegoke who disclosed this at a press briefing in Ibadan, on Tuesday, those to be selected must be between the age of 22 and 35 years.
Aside from unemployed or underemployed graduates, the programme also targets youths in business that want to expand.
Interested youths are to fill out an online form, followed by a physical assessment of their credentials and business proposals, as well as a consideration of recency in years of graduation.
Adegoke added that the programme targets reducing unemployment, youth restiveness and ensuring attitudinal reorientation.
She cautioned the beneficiaries, especially those keen on the expansion of business, against selling the starter packs they would be getting at the end of the training.
The beneficiaries, she noted, will be monitored for six months at the end of the training, while enjoining them to be good ambassadors.
Adegoke said: “We are implementing a Mega Youth Empowerment Programme where 15 youths would be picked from each of the 33 Local Government Areas to be trained on the art of writing a business proposal, tips for a successful interview to boost their employability, entrepreneurship and skill acquisition, financial/ business management and sustenance, leadership skills and mentorship, among others.
“Thereafter, trainees would be given starter packs for business start-ups depending on their areas of interest, and we will mentor them for six months after the training for sustainability and also evaluate and monitor their businesses to know how well they are doing.”
She further disclosed that the training of select youths will begin with that of the Oke-Ogun zone on June 10th followed by other zones.
Mr Jasper Ezenwaka, who is the consultant for the initiative, said that the programme will address the issue of ‘japa’ syndrome, particularly among the youths in the state and changing their mentality about business.
He commended the state governor, Seyi Makinde for deeming it fit to empower 500 graduates to address the challenge of youth unemployment, noting that the programme is carefully designed to meet the needs of the youth in the state.
He said that the multiplier effect of the initiative will be felt in the next one or two years because the beneficiaries will also be able to take two or three people off the streets.
Ezenwaka reiterated that the initiative will expose the participants to new business ideas and business managing skills during the training exercise.
He appealed to the potential participants to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the state governor by making judicious use of it to open the same door of opportunity to others.
Earlier in her speech, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youth and Sport, Mrs Olubukola Oladipo, implored the prospective applicants to be truthful with their data, be of good character during and after the training programme, and also maximise the opportunity given to them.
Also speaking, the Director, Youth Development, Mrs Kudirat Mustapha, said the last time an entrepreneurship programme was held in the state was about 11 years ago, noting that the forthcoming training would be different and unique in selection, with at least 80 per cent based on merit and other parameters, including age and the recency of graduation.
She explained that the pilot programme is targeted at unemployed graduates, assuring that subsequent training would be extended to youths who are already in business but still need support for extension.
The Director called on youths to complement the effort of the government and not trade off the empowerment kits that would be given to them in the course of the training.
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