Oyo State Government on Friday commenced training of 500 youths on application drive that would enable them to secure 5,000 dollar seed capital from Tony Elumelu Empowerment Programme (TEEP).
Speaking with newsmen in Ibadan at the training session, Mr Kazeem Bolarinwa, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Youths and Sports, said the trainees were entrepreneurs in different professions.
He said the programme aimed to reduce youths unemployment and improve the economy of the state.
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Bolarinwa said the training would give the applicants advantage of accessing the TEEP seed money ahead of others.
He added that the programme was designed to fund entrepreneurs and engage youths in various vocational occupations.
Mr Timi Olagunju, Co-Convener of the initiative in Oyo state, disclosed that over 1,200 youths applied for the training but could only admit 500 youths due to the outbreak of Coronavirus disease.
He said that the training would be conducted among 50 youths per batch to avoid overcrowding.
Olagunju, however, said the remaining 700 applicants, who would not participate physically in the training, can access it through twitter handle, YouTube and other available channels to be provided.
He further said the training would provide an opportunity for young entrepreneurs interested in going into professions such as Construction, Fashion Industry, Telecommunication, ICT among others
The Chief Trainer of the Project, Miss Fiyinfolu Olajola, said the foundation secured over 1,000 job opportunities for youths in the state and hoped to achieve more at the end of the training.