The National Directorate of Employment (NDE), has flagged-off the phase 1 of the renewed hope employment initiative with 1,701 beneficiaries across the 17 local government areas of Yobe state.
Flagging-off the initiative at the women affairs ministry in Damaturu, the NDE Director General Mr.Silas Ali Agara, said the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative is a modest short term effort at checking the scourge of unemployment in Nigeria.
Represented by the Yobe state NDE coordinator, Hajiya Binta Aliyu, Agara said employment initiative has been designed to engage a total of 93.731 unskilled and unemployed persons across Nigeria.
He saud,”We have ensured that a minimum of 10 persons from each of the 8,809 electoral wards in Nigeria were recruited to benefit from the 30 skill sets across our four core programmes of vocational skills development, small scale enterprises, rural employment promotion and special public works.
“Various categories of the unskilled and unemployed have been provided for within the framework of the programme such as school leavers, school dropouts, women, graduates of tertiary institutions, retirees and persons with special needs among others,” he said.
He further revealed that after the training, some of the beneficiaries would be provided with tools, equipment and startup capital.
However, those who will not benefit would be linked with credit granting institutions for further support.
Earlier Yobe state commissioner of women affairs, Hajiya Ya Jalo Badama, commended the federal government for initiating the renewed hope employment which according to her would drastically reduce the rates of unemployment among youth in the state and the country at large.
Represented by the deputy Director Human Resource Management, Zanna Aji Baitu, Ya Jalo urged the beneficiaries to make good use of the opportunity given to them and become self-reliant, stressing that many are looking for such an opportunity.