The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) says it has trained 1,977 unemployed persons in Nasarawa State to become self reliant since the inception of the programme in the state in 2012.
Alhaji Dauda Idris-Wase, the state NDE Coordinator, disclosed this on Saturday to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lafia.
He said that the beneficiaries had been trained and graduated in different skills acquisition programmes.
Idris-Wase said that the agency organised different skills acquisition training free of charge in order to empower unemployed persons and enable them to contribute their quota to national development.
“NDE came into existence in 1986, saddled with the responsibilities of training people, especially the youth and women, in different skills acquisition programmes in the country.
“This is in order to make them become self reliant and to contribute their quota to national development.
“I want to disclose to you that recently, 360 trainees were recruited for training in the three skills acquisition centres in Lafia, Mama and Keffi.
“But out of this number, 324 trainees endured to complete their training exercise successfully and have been graduated.
“With this, the total number of unemployed youths that have now been trained in different vocational skills in the state NDE acquisition centres since their inception in the year 2012 is 1,977,” he said.
According to him, the areas in which the unemployed persons were trained include Catering, Tailoring/Fashion Design, Hairdressing, Plumbing and Pipe Fittings, Interior Decoration, Computer Maintenance/Operation and welding.
He said it was better for government to teach people how to fish than to give them fish to eat, urging Nigerians not to continue to wait for white collar jobs but to embrace skills acquisition.
Idris-Wase called for collective efforts and partnership with the agency in order to provide job opportunities for all categories of unemployed persons, reduce abject poverty and generate wealth in the country.
He advised beneficiaries of the programmes not to allow the knowledge and skills gained to be in vain, but to be self-employed and become employers of labour.
The state coordinator assured that the directorate would initiate more people- oriented programmes in order to tackle youth unemployment, restiveness and poverty in the state and the country at large. (NAN)