NDE trains 50 unemployed graduates on business establishment in Ebonyi

BY JOEL ONUOHA

The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) has began the training of 50 unemployed graduates in Ebonyi on Start Your Own Business (SYOB) under its Small Scale Enterprises (SSE).

The NDE’s Director General, Abubakar Fikpo, said at the flagging-off of the five-days training in Abakaliki on Thursday, that the objective was to empower the trainees with the requisite skills to start their own businesses and become self-employed.

Fikpo, who was represented by the State Coordinator of the Directorate, Mr Marcel Igboanude, noted that Entrepreneurial Training and Development was one of the core programmes of generating job opportunities for the unemployed persons in the country.

According to him, SYOB training is an experiential approach used by NDE to ensure that the deliverables of entrepreneurship training and development are reliable among the unemployed youths.

"This programme aims at fostering the creation of new businesses, promote financial inclusion among the participants and provided them with the business skills to manage their enterprises effectively," Fikpo added.

On selection of the 50 beneficiaries, the Director-General said that they were drawn from the 13 local government areas of Ebonyi and stressing that the training is simultaneously on-going across the 36 states of the federation and Abuja.

He, however thanked the Governor David Umahi for creating the conducive environment and other supports in the implementation of NDE programmes in Ebonyi.

Also speaking, Mr David Apakasa, Director SSE Department, NDE Headquarters Abuja, represented by the Senior Enterprises Dev. Officers, Mr Ibrahim Mohammed advised the participants on the need to write good feasibility study report after the training.

According to Apakasa, those who exhibit exceptional training skills among the participants will be assisted in estableshing their businesess.

"I urge you (the trainees) to avail yourselves of the opportunity of the programme to become financially independent in life," he advised.

In his remark, Dr Ewa Ekea, Head of SSE Department, NDE Ebonyi urged the beneficiaries to take the training with all seriousness in order to reduce joblessness and youth restiveness in their respective communities, state, and Nigeria at large.

While responding, Obi Felix, one of the participants thanked the federal government and the NDE for giving them the opportunity to participate in the training.

Felix promised to make the best use of the opportunity and development businesses.