Habiba Balarabe-Suleiman, Director General of the Nasarawa State Human Capital Development Agency.
Cecilia Onah, Lafia
In its effort to assist youths in the state with employment opportunities, the Nasarawa State government has organised a job fair for no fewer than 114 indigent graduates who were recently trained in several skill acquisition programmes.
The state’s Human Capital Development Agency in collaboration with Oxfam Nigeria and Poise Graduate Finishing Academy had conducted a 3 weeks training for the youths to make them employable and become entrepreneurs.
Speaking at the job fair and graduation ceremony for the 2023 Employability and Entrepreneurship training programme in Lafia on Friday, Governor Abdullahi Sule expressed optimism that the training would enhance the capacity of the graduates to be gainfully employed and engage in meaningful ventures that would boost the economy of the state.
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The Governor who was represented by the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Aliyu Tijjani, explained that since the commencement of the training programme in the year 2020, over 400 indigent graduates from across the 13 Local Government Areas of the state had been trained and empowered.
While urging the beneficiaries to always make the state proud wherever they find themselves, Sule assured of the state government’s commitment to continue to provide an enabling environment for youths in the state to explore their potentials.
On her part, the Director General of the Nasarawa State Human Capital Development Agency, Habiba Balarabe-Suleiman, expressed gratitude to the Nasarawa State government and its partners for the initiative to upgrade the knowledge of graduates in the state with 21st century skills.
She mentioned the course contents the beneficiaries had learnt to include Business Plan Writing, Customer Service Excellence, Marketing Strategy, Business and Personal Finance Management, among others.
“The 2023 Employability and Entrepreneurship training programme is the fourth and final edition. Since we started in the year 2020, the programme has being successful because of the determination of Governor Abdullahi Sule’s administration to engage youths positively.
“During these four years, the beneficiaries have been impacted with 21st century skills, and quite a number of them have gained employment and started their own businesses.
“Most of them got loans from the state government, and they are doing well in their respective endeavours. So, we do not just train the graduates, we also help them to succeed in every way possible,” Balarabe-Suleiman added.
Earlier in her goodwill message, the state’s Head of Service, Abigail Waya, while thanking Governor Abdullahi Sule for always providing opportunities for youths in the state, urged the beneficiaries not to disappoint the organisers of the training programme, but do everything within their powers to make them proud.
One of the beneficiaries who spoke on behalf of the others, Maria Obile, expressed gratitude to the organisers, and promised to put the employability and entrepreneurship skills into good use.
