As part of vibrant international relations and diplomacy, existing between Nigeria and Germany, the German Development Cooperation has created empowerment scheme expected to boost employability of women and adolescent girls in the country.
BusinessDay reports that the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) skills empowerment scheme for women and adolescent girls in Nigeria forms part of the popular Skills Development for Youth Empowerment in Nigeria (SKYE) created some years back to tackle challenges of unemployment and unemployability of Nigerian youths.
The German Development Cooperation recently broadened the empowerment scheme to cover more adolescent girls and women in the country knowing full well that women and adolescent girls are the most vulnerable to abuse and acute poverty.
GIZ has however conceived and started empowerment of adolescent girls and women with skills under its technical and vocational education and training with a focus on construction and agriculture which is expected to make adolescent girls and women self reliant and also stimulate construction and agricultural sectors of the country’s economy.
Speaking in Abeokuta on Wednesday at a training section where over 100 women and adolescent girls were converged, Hans-Ludwig Bruns, Cluster Coordinator for Sustainable Economic Development and Head of Skills Development for Youth Empowerment at GIZ, noted that gender skills gap in the construction and agricultural sectors prompted a special coverage of adolescent girls and women in the German empowerment scheme.
Bruns said, “There is a gender skills gap in the sectors of construction and agriculture, which are the key sectors of SKYE programme. Youths, especially adolescent girls and women should take advantage of the labour market needs in the sectors of construction and agriculture.
” These are available trainings to enhance these technical skills that will boost employment and reduce poverty in Ogun state and across Nigeria. The SKYE Programme is at the forefront to bridge the gender skills gap; we are currently offering several Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), through our implementing partners.”
Dipeolu Adewale, Professor and Dean of College of Agricultural Management and Rural Development at Federal University Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), stated that Nigeria would only fight poverty if youths and women, especially girls were empowered with required skills for her to be self reliant and be able to create more job opportunities for others.
He suggested that the establishment of small ventures by almost all the youths would give a perfect antidote for poverty, unemployment and economic recession, saying government should also provide an enabling atmosphere for small scale businesses to thrive with a special focus on women and adolescent girls.
“I wish government will listen to us. The way to bring Nigerians out of recession is to allow the establishment of small ventures. The more small ventures we have, the more outputs we will produce and the more the economic recession will disappear.
“If you have a skill, you will get employed easily, if you have a skill you cannot be sacked at your establishment”, he added.
