Over 500 Youths Acquire NEPAD Training For Self-Employment In Anambra 

Raymond Ozoji, Awka

Mrs Gloria Akobundu, National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer of New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), has called on youths to make good use of the skill they acquired from the  training organised by the agency.

Akobundu made the call on Monday in Awka after concluding a week skill acquisition training organised for persons with interest in acquiring various skills for self-employment in Anambra.

She urged the over 500 participants in the  skill acquisition training not to throw away all that they were thought but use the skills learnt so as to be economically independent

“NEPAD has good intentions for the people of the country and will not relent in the fight to achieve the goals of the body,“ she said.

Akobundu, represented by Mr Emmanuel Abang, Director Programmes Development and Implementation NEPAD Nigeria under the Presidency, encouraged the participants to put to maximum use the teachings of the trainers.

He said NEPAD was an economic development programme of African Union which was adopted at the 37th session of the Assembly of the Heads of States and Governments on July 2001 in Lusaka Zambia.

He said NEPAD was basically for economic empowerment created under the office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) for reduction of poverty in the country through training and empowerment of youths and women with interest in skill acquisitions.

He said that NEPAD was well structured that after offering skills training in various areas like in cake and pastry making, bead and hat making, barbing among others, they will also give starter packs to participants.

He also said that the body does a follow-up with data of all the participants across the country in its data bank  to ensure success of the programme.

He said that apart from the starter packs given to participants at the end of their training, NEPAD encouraged the people to go into cooperatives in order to have easy access to loan from bank of industry and related banks

He said NEPAD was a social–economic flagship programme of the African Union which Nigerian government was not playing with at all because of its economic usefulness to the people of the country.

He listed four primary objectives of NEPAD to include to eradicate poverty, promote sustainable growth and development, integrate Africa in the world economy and accelerate empowerment of the women and youths.

Miss Chidimma Akpata, Chief Officer of Adimma Concept and a resource person said the objectives of NEPAD was laudable and enjoined other persons yet to partake in the training to join once they hear of the program anywhere they reside.

Akpata said that the era of certificate branding had gone since the white collar jobs were hard to come by, adding that anyone with  any form of skill training would always have money to solve its economic and social problems.

She said every home needed  to have one with skill no matter the educational certificate as a boost to its daily income and to also enjoy quality living.

Akpata said she was impressed by  the number of participants who had shown reasonable interest to learn the hats, laminator, fascinator, hair piece and bridal hand fan and  urged  them to make good use of all they have learnt from  the programme.

Miss Perpetual Akutuekwe a Resource Person on confectioneries said that she was happy to see large number of persons interested in learning how to make buns, chin-chin, custard, plantain dories  and cake among others.

Akutuekwe said the skill was very easy and simple to learn for any interested persons and assured that anyone who took  the training serious would in no distant time be economically comfortable because anything edible yields money.

Mrs Chidimma James one of the facilitators said that she was a trainee in March 2018 at Owerri, saying  she could happily give testimony of the training in her family.

James said the participants should not look down on the training because it was being offered freely but should concentrate  in getting down to business and assured that the participant who would engage himself would never regret it.

She said she was called to come to assist facilitators because of large number of persons who had shown interest and to talk to them on the reality of the programme being a beneficiary of the exercise in 2018.

James said that if the participants get focused at the end of the day they would be part of those commending the government for introducing NEPAD and will call on more unemployed  youths to enroll in the NEPAD programme.

Mr Favour Nnaemeka a 17-year-old man said he was asked by his grandma to come and learn the skill of hat and bead making so as to keep himself busy since he had finished his secondary education.

Nnaemeka said he was grateful to his grandma for introducing him to join the programme and assured that he would put all he learnt into practice that would transform to economic development for him.

Mrs Ngozi Omeife a widow said that she has learnt a lot about hat and bead making and promised to raise more capital to go into the business in full as the process was not a difficult process.

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