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  • ITF trains 74,000 youths in technical, vocational skills

    ITF trains 74,000 youths in technical, vocational skills

    • Partners OPS

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has trained 74,000 young Nigerians  in different technical and vocational trades, its Director-General, Dr. Juliet Chukkas – Onaeko, has said.

    Speaking during a stakeholders’ engagement forum in Lagos on Zero Oil Policy and Economic Growth: The ITF Perspective, she said the programme was ongoing.

    She appealed to stakeholders for support and collaborate to consolidate on the ongoing training programmes in the different sectors of the economy.

    She said: “So far, 74, 000 young Nigerians have been trained in different technical and vocational trade areas. Most of the trainees secured employment immediately on  completion of their training, while a large number of them have established businesses of their own and are doing well.”

    Mrs. Chukkas–Onaeko said the technical skills development programme is being run using facilities of employers in different parts of the country and ITF Skills Training Centres, adding that over 2,300 trainees have so far benefitted from this partnership.

    She also said ITF has entered into technical collaboration with Cement Technology Institute of Nigeria (CTIN) for the training of craftsmen and artisans in the construction industry.

    She said the Federal Government has introduced various policies to reform the economy in order to place it on sustainable economic growth and stability.

    She said: “As a proactive organisation, we have acquired four mobile workshops to complement our existing industrial skills training centres. These will increase accessibility to skills training in all nooks and crannies of the country and ensure that our young men and women acquire relevant skills to fit into existing and new jobs.

    “The ITF has also refocused its training programme to equip two million youths annually with employable and life skills required for self and paid employment. We hope that the outcome will be drastic reduction in unemployment and restiveness across the country.”

    The ITF boss said most of the trainees secures employment immediately after completion of their training, while large number of them have established businesses on their own and are doing well. “This laudable programme is on-going and we need your support and collaboration to strengthen and consolidate it,” she said.

    Mrs. Chukkas – Onaeko said ITF is also in partnership with Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) for the training of young Nigerians in various skills, adding that the Technical Skill Development Programme (TSDP) is being run using facilities of employers in different parts of the country and ITF’s skills training centre.

    According to her, the seminar is expected to attend to all concerns.  “We shall highlight the key activities of ITF;  the collaborations we have made over the years and the various reforms we are putting in place to support the Federal Government policy to transit from oil to other sectors,” she said.

    Mrs. Chukkas – Onaeko, said in line with trends in the international community, the Federal Government has introduced various policies to reform the economy and place it on a sustainable economic growth and stability.

    Of particular importance was the launch of the Transformation Agenda, which emphasised growth in manufacturing, agriculture, power, solid minerals, tourism, road infrastructure and other critical sectors of the economy. The follow up launch of the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP) policies were to ensure that our quantitative advantage was turned to productive gains.

    She said the NIPR focuses on economic and revenue diversification in industrial sectors where Nigeria has comparative advantage, adding that supporting structures such as infrastructure, skills, finance, investment climate, innovation, standards and local patronage are being initiated to ensure sustainability.

  • ITF to train 2m youth on employable skills annually

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) said, it has refocused its training programme to equip 2 million ‎youth annually with employable and life skills required for self and paid employment.

    This was even as it said; it has already trained 74,000 young Nigerians ‎in different technical and vocational trade areas to provide skills to support the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP).

    The Director General of ITF, Dr. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko disclosed this in her keynote address to the ITF’s Stakeholders Engagement Seminar held in Kaduna Thursday.

    ‎She said, most of the 74,000 trainees secured employment immediately after completion of their training, while a large number of them have established business of their own and doing very well.

    Speaking on the theme of the seminar, ‎’Zero Oil Policy and Economic Growth Strategies in Nigeria’, the ITF DG said, the determination of the federal government to develop sectors outside the oil and gas will catapult Nigeria from the current 26th to one of the leading economies by the year 2020.

    ‎According to her, ITF as a proactive organisation has acquired four mobile workshops to complement its existing industrial training centres, believing that, that will increase accessibility to skills training in all nooks and crannies of the country and enable youth acquire relevant skills to fit into existing on new jobs.

    Dr. Onaeko however solicited partnerships of all stakeholders to enable the fund achieve its lofty goals.

    Participants of the seminar were drawn from the seven states that make up the North-West geo-political zone.

  • Fed Govt committed to job creation – Kobani

    The newly sworn-in Minister of State, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Kenneth Kobani has assured that the federal government still remains committed to job creation and repositioning of the nation’s industrial sector.

    He also said the ministry in collaboration with the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) will reverse the persistent trend of youths unemployment in the country

    The Minister of State stated this Friday during the Industrial Training Fund, ITF 2014 End of Year Merit Award held at the Fund’s headquarters in Jos, the Plateau state capital.

    Represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Amb. Abdulkadir Musa, the minister said, “the federal government is disturbed that despite the efforts put in place to address the issue of lack of gainful employment, the trend persists but government is not deterred in actualizing the mandate of curbing employment.

    He said, “I am pleased that my first function after my inauguration as minister is to join one of the most important parastatals (ITF) whose strides have contributed in no small measure to the realization of the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan.

    “We are all familiar with the unemployment situation in the country despite laudable strategies of the federal government. I have been briefed about the mandate by Mr. President for the Industrial Training Fund to train 2million Nigerians annually.

    “I am equally aware of the achievements the ITF has recorded in the National Industrial Skills Development Programme which has trained over 72,000 Nigerians in two years. We are aware that about 23.8% of our population of about 167million is not gainfully employed.

    “These are disturbing statistics that the federal government and the federal Ministry of Industry and Investment are committed to reverse by strengthening and supporting agencies such as the ITF to fully activate their mandate.”

    Earlier, Director-General of ITF, Mrs. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko in her remark stated that the Fund has through its 4-point Agenda in 2014 recorded landmark achievements in areas like technical vocational skills, management and entrepreneurship training.

    She further stressed that 2015 will be more rewarding as the level of employment will be multiplied as the result of series of training and empowerment done in the areas of welding and fabrication, ICT and autotronics, fisheries, yam, cassava and rice processing, tiling, plaster of paris, plumbing, garment making among others.

    The event however featured the presentation of awards to deserving staff as well as goodwill messages from dignitaries including the Chairman of the ITF Governing Council, Dr. Fariah Arebi.

  • ITF, UNIDO partner on skills gap’s survey

    ITF, UNIDO partner on skills gap’s survey

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF), in partnership with United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has commenced a National Industrial Skills gap assessment survey to identify the mismatch between the skills of available workers and skills demand in the industrial sector.

    The Director-General, ITF,  Dr.  Juliet Chukkas Oneako who spoke during the launch of the National Industrial Skills Gap Assessment Survey in Abuja, assured that skills development has become top priority of the government.

    She said: “As a nation,  we are aware of the present and future skills needs in industries and most importantly, we  understand the latest employment trends. Without this knowledge,  the skills produced by institutions will not meet the needs of the industries and the desire for an inclusive sustainable economic growth will be stunted.

    “The survey will be conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in line with the important industrial sectors identified in the National Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP). The survey is expected to be upgraded every five years by the ITF and the NBS.

    “Data from the skills gap assessment survey will serve as baseline for developing strategies and appropriate intervention measures to address existing gaps.”

    The DG said the development of relevant industrial skills has remained the most critical issues facing the country  today.

    Onaeko said: “The current paradox in Nigeria, where on the one hand many youths are unable to find jobs, while on the other, industries claim they have jobs available but cannot find people with requisite skills must be solved.

    “It is against this background that the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment developed the NIRP to rapidly build up industrial capacity, and improve competiveness in Nigeria.”

  • ITF, OGFTZA sign MoU on vocational training

    The Director-General, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Dr. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Oil and Gas Free Trade Zone Authority (OGFTZA), Onne, Port Harcourt in Abuja.

    The deal is for collection of contributions for capacity building.

    The ITF boss observed that the   country’s population is growing very fast, and that there was need to harness this potential.

    She said the shortage of technical and vocational skills is constraining enterprise development and restricting employment,

    “Evidence from developed and emerging economies show that requisite expertise constitute a key platform for attaining sustainable economic improvement, which could only be accomplished by a properly planned and implementable system of education and training. In spite of the different governments’ interventions, it is evident that the nation is nevertheless grappling with shortage of skills,” she said.

    She noted that Nigeria does not have the expertise, and that the ITF had proffered options that would address the weaknesses and bridge the capabilities without which it would be hard for Nigeria to  industrialise.

    The Managing Director of OGFTZA, Hon. Alabo Victor, said the free trade zones were designed to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the oil and gas sector. He said the oil and gas free trade zones had been active and attracted main oil field operations.

    Hon. Victor pointed out that Onne Oil and Gas Free Trade Zone attracted more than 200 businesses operating in different statuses, ranging from oil service companies, projects, manufacturing and processing, banking and so on.

  • Why ITF can’t meet job creation target

    Why ITF can’t meet job creation target

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF), according to its Director-General, Prof. Longmas Wapmuk, is with the execution of its mandate. It cannot meet up because of non-remittance of the one per cent employers’contribution and inadequate funding, among others,  raising doubts about the Fund meeting its two million jobs creation target, reports TOBA AGBOOLA

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF), a parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, appears hamstrung. Its efforts at reducing unemployment through vocational training and production of skilled manpower are  being hampered by the non-remittance of the one per cent employers’ contribution and inadequate funding.

    Its immediate past Director-General, Prof. Longmas Sambo Wapmuk painted a bleak picture of things at the organisation.  The Fund is struggling with the  implementation of its mandate because of financial challenges. He said the Fund is targeting about N150 billion revenue yearly to meet its major short and medium term human capacity development programmes.

    Wapmuk said the loss of jobs to Asians and other nationals because of lack of technical skills would become history if ITF gets adequate funds.

    “The wholesome and proper implementation, or operation of the ITF Act 2011 as amended, holds immense benefit for the overall socio-economic well being and development of the nation, because poverty eradication is a vital tool in the war against insecurity, unemployment and hunger,” he said, adding that with proper funding, ITF will expand skill training centres across the country, ensuring that there are 37 of them across the country to cover 3,725 trade areas.

    This, he said, would ensure the training of 25 students, amounting to a total of 23,125 highly skilled technicians yearly, adding that the six centres for Advanced Skills Training for Employment (CASTE) across the six geo-political zones, would also turn out 6,750 highly-qualified graduates yearly.

    He said alot of research had focused on the performance of manpower training institutions and manpower needs in Africa, using the ITF, a key manpower training institution in Nigeria, as a case study.

    However, experts said these benefits might elude Nigerians because of poor funding caused by the non-remittance of statutory contributions by operators in the industrial and Organised Private Sector. This was why the Director-General, Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Mr. Olusegun Oshinowo,  decried the attitude of industrialists and business organisations for refusing, or failing to remit their training contributions to the ITF.

    He said it was important for industrialists and enterprises to meet their financial responsibilities to the Fund so that it could continue to effectively carry out its activities.

    Acknowledging that though, businesses and industries were set up for profit-making, Oshinowo  urged firms that are not remitting to have a rethink.

    A training expert and human resource professional, Kunle Rotimi, also said a change of attitude by stakeholders is needed to keep the ITF sustainably funded. According to him, the ITF remains one of the few organisations in the public sector that is fulfilling its mandate.

    He explained that the initiative by ITF to establish industrial skills training centres in each state, and advanced skills training centres might never be realised if partners failed to live up to their responsibilities.

    Noting that the ITF Act spells out sanctions for defaulters, Rotimi, however, admitted that the punishment may be hard to apply since they are not stiff

    Besides, the ITF, he said, might be reluctant to apply sanctions to partners it intends to work with to address a major national challenge such as unemployment.

    Former President, Nigeria Institute of Training and Development, Femi Kilajo, said the role of vocational training and skills in the eradication of youth unemployment is important. He emphasised that vocational training, including plumbing, industrial welding, iron work and fabrications, as well as computer skills, are being imparted on trainees by the ITF  its centres.

    Pointing out that it was technical and vocational skills adopted by China, Brazil, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia and Canada, among other developed nations, that made them strong in terms of economic and industrial output, Kilajo said technicians, welders amongst other numerous trade and crafts have been trained by the Fund, with all of them contributing their parts towards developing the economy.

    The ITF was established in 1971 by the Federal Government to bridge the unemployment gap through the  vocational training, and also produce skilled manpower for the industrial sector.

    According to stakeholders, ITF stands out among all the interventionist agencies of the Federal and state governments that have been created to tackle the problem of acute unemployment in Nigeria due to  its proactive and sustainable result-oriented methods.

    Some graduates of the ITF’s Industrial Skills Training Centre (ISTC) in Ikeja, Lagos, who spoke with The Nation said apart from the provision of skilled manpower for the industrial sector, the ITF also goes the extra mile of ensuring that global standards are brought to bear in its training curriculum. This, they said, was made possible through the Fund’s understudying and engagement with major technical and vocational training institutions.

  • N15b deal for 20 million artisans

    N15b deal for 20 million artisans

    Lack of skilled manpower is a problem in the building subsector, which has led to the influx of artisans from neigbouring countries. To address the challenge, the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and Cement Technology Institute of Nigeria (CTIN) have signed a N15 billion capacity building package. Over 20 million Nigerians are expected to benefit from the deal. TOBA AGBOOLA reports.

    Property developers may soon stop   going across the border to look for artisans who are believed to be better than their Nigerian counterparts. The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and the Cement Technology Institute of Nigeria  (CTN) have signed a N15 billion capacity building deal under which over 20 million artisans are expected to benefit. No fewer than 3000 trainees will participate in the maiden edition in nine states.

    There will be 350 artisans and craftsmen from each state and the training will cover carpentry, tile laying, Plaster of Paris (PoP), electrical, masonry, plumbing, as well as block making/inter-locking tiles.

    The Director-General, Nigeria Employers Consultative Assembly (NECA), Mr Segun Oshinowo, described the deal as a step in the right direction.

    Lamenting that there were no sufficient manpower in the cement sector, he said  under the MoU, more people would be trained to match the growth in the sector.

    “We will be expanding the capacity of Nigerians involve in the sector and this a good news to us because the sector is capable of providing millions of jobs,” he said.

    On the implementation of the MoU, Oshinowo suggested that the ITF should  use both brown and green fields.

    “The combination of brown field and green field is necessary. Brown field means that they will make use of the facilities that are already on ground, while the green field means that a new technical school will be created. This is very important so as to achieve wider coverage and success,” he explained.

    Speaking during the signing, ITF’s Director-General, Dr. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko, said the collaboration between the Cement Technology Institute of Nigeria (CTIN) and her organisation on training was a pointer that something revolutionary geared towards reducing unemployment was in the offing.

    She said the initiative would take advantage of the training and certification for all calibre of skills in her organisation and help to turn out qualified and skilled artisans to serve the cement industry as well as other subsectors in building and construction.

    “This training programme, which is targeted to cover the country will, among others, broaden the scope of the use of cement in various construction. The training workshop has been designed to impact the necessary skills to 350 artisans and craftsmen in each of the nine states to be covered in the first phase,” she said.

    She added that the training would cover the following trade areas: carpentry, tile laying, Plaster of Paris (PoP) works, electrical works, masonry, plumbing, as well as block making/inter-locking tiles works.

    “It is also important to announce that the first phase of the training programme will cover a state each from the six geo-political zones as well as three  peculiar states of Lagos, Kano and Port-Harcourt,” the DG said.

    She, therefore, appealed to state governments to key into the programme by making their citizens to participate in the training.

    Chairman, Board of Trustees of CTIN, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, said the first phase of the training is aimed at the artisans  because of their importance in the cement industry.

    “We are all aware that it has become a norm rather than practice to seek for competent artisans and craftsmen from the neighbouring countries, due mainly to inadequate vocational training given to our local tradesmen and women,” Dangote said.

    The business mogul said the institute is the first of its kind to, among other things, train  manpower in cement technology and related fields; and to liaise with other relevant institutions and bodies to enhance cement technology development.

    He explained that they were doing this in tandem with the objectives of CTIN and the ITF. He noted that ITF has, as part of its mandate, the promotion of skills’acquisition to boost indigenous manpower to meet private and public sectors’ needs; as well as evaluation and certification of vocational skills acquired by apprentices, craftsmen and technicians.

    “The present efforts to enhance the skills of our artisans and craftsmen are, therefore, a symbiotic relationship between two organisations saddled with imparting skills andknowledge to our tradesmen and women,” he said.

    Dangote further said the collaboration is also aimed at achieving the following objectives: To conduct training for artisans and craftsmen, determine specific needs and opportunities for capacity building and process improvement for artisans and craftsmen that use cement to execute their work; promote professionalism, proficiency and actualisation of the training to -work initiative and entrepreneurship to discourage the importation of foreign artisans and craftsmen from neighbouring countries; and complement the transformation agenda of the Jonathan administration in youth empowerment and employment generation.

    Also, a member of CTIN, Mrs. Adepeju Adebajo, said Lafarge Africa has, on its own, embarked on vocational training on block making for the youth. It has also taken upon itself the enhancement of the capacity of professionals and artisan groups to improve construction.

    Mrs Adebajo, who is also the Managing Director, WAPCO Operations, said the block making occupation is unregulated, standards unenforced, and the entry into the trade is almost free. Based on these, she said block makers were at liberty to roll out products which sometimes were substandards.

    She said: “To show its commitment, Lafarge has developed a roadmap on how to bridge the knowledge and skill gap in construction practice, hence, the introduction of Artisan Capacity Enhancement Scheme, (ACES).

    “In the course of implementing ACES, Lafarge has organised series of programmes, including seminars and conferences, train the trainer, and on site education and engagements.

    “As CTIN is collaborating with ITF on the same course, I believe the training will yield successful result. We also promise on our own to continue engaging and educating artisans and block-makers while partnering with the Federal Government and other agencies to increase the skills and competencies of artisans in the built sector.”

  • ITF trains 74,000 youth in skills acquisition

    ITF trains 74,000 youth in skills acquisition

    DIRECTOR General of the Industrial Training Fund, ITF, Dr. Juliet Chukkas, yesterday disclosed in Kano that over 74,000 youths have so far been trained in different technical and vocational trades to enhance national development.

    Chukkas who made this known during the graduation ceremony of the 4th batch of trainees of the ITF,-NECA technical skills development project in Kano, said the youths were trained in welding, fabrication, plumbing, electrical installation, furniture and cabinet-making, autotronics and Plaster of Paris (POP) production.

    According to her, out of the 74,000 youths trained in the various skills, 37,000 of them were currently being trained and were drawn from the 36 states of the federation and the FCT in the trades that are dominant and employable.

    She said that Nigeria being a developing economy needs corps of technicians and artisans to support the industrialisation of the country.

    She noted that Nigeria being densely populated and with its vast national resources should have hundreds of technical and vocational skills acquisition centres that will enhance its capacity to deliver better technical training system in the centers across the nation.

    Chukkas also said the ITF has entered into partnership with a number of countries in TVET to establish technical and vocational skills training centers in the 36 states and Abuja in capacity building.

    According to her, establishing technical centres is capital-intensive and in order to achieve this, the ITF urged all employers to pay their statutory obligation of one percent gross pay to the fund as contained in the act.

    However, the training manager, ITF, Mr. Chris Adikwe, said that since the technical skills development project commenced five years ago, over 145 trainees have successfully graduated, adding that another 50 have satisfied the criteria for the ITF-NECA certificate of competence after the 3-month compulsory industrial attachment in relevant organisations.

  • ITF, SMEDAN, BoI train 37,000 youths

    Industrial Training Fund, (ITF) said it has trained 37,000 youths in collaboration with Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and Bank of Industry (BoI) in two years.

    According to the organisation, the training was carried out under the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP), which was introduced by the Federal Government two years.

    Director-General, Dr. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko, made this known in Lagos during an interactive forum with industry stakeholders organised by the Fund.

    She said the theme of the forum, Moving Forward and Succeeding Together is apt and a clarion call for all its stakeholders to join in the Fund strides towards a developed and industrialised Nigeria.

    Onaeko pointed out that no nation develops by merely exporting raw materials without having a booming industrial sector, saying that for this to happen, an adequate number of skilled workforce as a pre-requisite is needed.

    She added that the Fund came up with a four point agenda which are: increase the number of Nigerians trained to two million annually; fully automate ITF business processes and ensure 100 per cent each of collection training contributions as well as implementation of Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES).

    She added that the four point agenda is intended to ensure effective service delivery that will add value to the bottom line of clients’ operations and guarantee full actualisation of its mandate.

    “As part of our commitment to building the capacity of middle level manpower in Nigeria, the ITF in conjunction with Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) has set up a Technical Skills Development Project (TSDP).

    She said: “The project, which currently runs in the facilities of NECA member companies, Peugeot Automobile of Nigeria (PAN) Kaduna, Niger Dock Lagos, Nigerian Breweries and ITF ISTCs in Ikeja and Kano, is set to be expanded to more facilities in order to accept more trainees.”

    She appealed to companies that had failed in their statutory duties change, saying: “it is only when we collectively live up to our responsibilities that our dream of a great Nigeria will be achieved.

  • ITF, NECA partner firms on job creation

    ITF, NECA partner firms on job creation

    The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) and the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) are partnering with some companies on capacity building and training.

    NECA and ITF have met with Kamjay Farms Limited, a poultry/aquaculture outfit, on ways to train more youths to embrace farming.

    Speaking during tour of the company,  ITF Director-General Dr. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko, said more people would be trained when NECA and IFFcollaborate with more companies, the agricultural sector, she noted, is larger than other sectors in terms of employment and job creation. She also stressed the need for government’s support for their activities.

    The company trains 25 to 30 youth per batch. However, Dr. Onaeko said the number would be increased to 100 next year to accommodate those who wish to key into the programme.

    The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Kamjay Farms Limited, Mr Bode Oyedele,  said real growth cannot be achieved without the agricultural sector.

    “If we are talking of real growth, we cannot leave out agriculture because without it, there is no life, there is no economy,” he said.

    He stressed the need for support from the government, especially for the trained youths to stand on their feet.

    With the collaboration of NECA and ITF, Oyedele said, Kamjay had been able to train more youths on various aspects of agriculture. He disclosed that the trainees were more interested in the aspect of fingerlings rearing because it is more lucrative than others and requires less capital to set up.

    “Because Lagos is an aquatic state, we initially concentrated on aquaculture, but our students and the trainees showed much interest in fingerlings so we have to do more of that,” he explained, adding that with few pieces of fingerlings (two males and three females), one could produce about 25,000 fingerlings within a short period of time and realise about N750,000. A fingerling is sold for N30.

    He added that many people were keying into fingerling production because of its higher demand. Oyedele, who said he has keyed into the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) of the administration, explained that his company is the only firm approved to supply fingerlings to farmers in Lagos State under the GES scheme.

    However, with the present 500,000 production capacity, the company is yet to meet up with the demand for the fingerlings in the state. Oyedele, however, explained that the support of NECA and ITF in the procurement of feed mills has helped the company to increase its production and produce feeds for its own farm and other farmers in Lagos State.

    He called on the Federal Government to subsidise agricultural products for the growth of the real sector, saying that unlike any other goods, price of agricultural products could not be easily controlled by the farmers.

    For example, he said, while the price of feed mills keeps soaring, the price of eggs has not changed in the market.

    The aim of NECA/ITF collaboration is to get youths out of unemployment by giving them training on poultry, aquaculture and other aspects of agriculture to be job creators.

    NECA’s Director-General, Mr. Segun Oshinowo, said the purpose of the synergy is to reduce the rate of unemployment among youths by training them on how they can create jobs even with little capital at their disposal.

    “By being here, we hope to create jobs by getting the youths trained so that they can stand on their own,” he said, noting that there are huge potentials in the agricultural sector especially, in the area of aquaculture.

    The NECA boss appealed to the government to support the initiatives with funds as both organisations lack financial capacity to carry out their assignments.