As part of efforts at reducing unemployment in Nigeria, Chris Ngige, minister of labour and employment, on Monday affirmed Federal Government’s determination to establish more skills acquisition centres across the country to provide vocational training to unemployed youths.
The minister stated this in Abuja while addressing a delegation from the Ngige Mandate Movement, Abuja branch.
The minister, who urged Nigerians to de-emphasise the quest for white-collar jobs, stressed the need for youths to explore other alternatives skills in building construction such as plumbing, tile laying, plaster of Paris, screeding, and painting, among others as viable means of livelihood.
According to him, “the Federal Government will soon establish more skills acquisition centres across the country to train unemployed youths in different vocational skills through the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) project.”
Government will in no distant time embark on Community Service Scheme through the Conditional Cash Transfer meant to alleviate poverty among the vulnerable in the society, Ngige said.
He urged Nigerians to brace up to the challenges of the time, stressing that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration would leave no stone unturned in making sure that unemployed Nigerian youths were engaged in productive ventures.
To this end, he said that his ministry was liaising with other government establishments and NGOs, state and local governments on the need to sensitise people to key into the skills acquisition programme of the Federal Government.
Earlier, in his address, Foster Ogbalu, coordinator of the Ngige Mandate Movement, Abuja chapter, said the purpose of their visit was to congratulate the minister on his appointment.
Ogbalu assured the minister of their unalloyed support, adding that they were determined more than ever before to collaborate with him to making sure “he succeeds in the discharge of his duties.”
