Determined to reduce the growing rate of unemployment in Nigeria, International Breweries Plc (IBPLC) has concluded plans to create new jobs based on its flagship programme, the Hero Apprenticeship initiative.
The initiative has already empowered hundreds of young apprentices and entrepreneurs, equipping them with essential skills and opportunities to thrive in business.
This year’s programme, ‘Hero Apprentice to Business Owner,’ will focus on recognising and rewarding business owners who have successfully transitioned from apprentices to established entrepreneurs through the Hero Apprenticeship Programme.
These successful business owners will receive business grant and leverage the platform to promote their businesses across multiple media channels.
It will spans the entire country, focusing on Onitsha, Nnewi, Enugu, Aba, Umuahia, Owerri, Uyo, Asaba, Port-Harcourt and Abuja.
The widespread visibility will allow business owners to expand their reach, grow their investments, and compete more effectively in the market.
The participating ex-apprentices now business owners, have been with the brand on the apprenticeship journey for three years and have received mentorship, and training in universities on select short courses with certifications and seed funding.
Now, they have established their businesses and will be taking on new apprentices to continue the cycle, a testament to the impact of apprenticeship on the economy and how sustainable the system is in tackling unemployment.
Speaking on the programme, Dubem Orji, marketing manager for Hero Lager, said that the essence is to create jobs and wealth.
“As a brand, we believe in creating communal wealth because our brand will thrive when our communities thrive and thus, we are committed to supporting the apprenticeship system to make our contributions to the reduction of unemployment and support communities where we do business,” he explained.
Orji further said that apprenticeship isn’t just about learning a trade or skill but about self-sufficiency and contributing to nation building.
The campaign will kick off with the Hero’s Walk procession and market engagement activities, during which the newly established business owners will be recognised.
Also, trade masters—mentors who played a crucial role in training these successful businessmen and women will be recognised.
All the apprentices and their former trade masters cum mentors will be recognised as cornerstones of Nigeria’s trade, commerce, and economy.
This year’s message ‘The Sun Rises For You’ reflects the brand’s recognition of consumers who take advantage of each day’s opportunity and make efforts towards the attainment of their goal, which the brand inspires consumers to do with determination and resilience.
Since its inception in 2021, the initiative has enabled the award of certificates to 250 apprentices in collaboration with select universities. It has helped to elevate the apprenticeship system and position it as a modern solution for tackling unemployment in Nigeria.
Being the first brand to venture into this ambitious mission of changing the face of the apprenticeship system, Hero through a fruitful collaboration with apprentices, trade masters and university professors, understudied the apprenticeship system and codified the learning into an apprenticeship curriculum.
The essence is to help young apprentices to finish school where all they have learned in trade is formalised and presented in a broader spectrum.
This has revolutionised the apprenticeship system by bridging the gap between formal education and practical skills.
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