FG Approves N5.5bn For 60,000 New Jobs

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) yesterday approved N5.5 billion  for the creation of 60,000 jobs.

The contract, under the N-Power Knowledge Multipack project, is to train 12,000 youths between 18 and 25 years old.

The 12,000 youths will in turn be empowered to train additional youths, bringing the total beneficiaries to 60,000.

The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, briefed State House correspondents at the end of FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

According to him, the contract, which was awarded under the Social Investment Programmes, will make provision of N259,000 each for training the youths and N207, 000 each for their tools.

He said: “One of the projects approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) today is knowledge, youth and empowerment programme. Now, this programme targets 12,000 young Nigerians of between the ages of 18to 25 years. It is meant to give them trainings and devices.

“The trainings intend to transform the 12,000 beneficiaries from unemployed, under-employed trainees to employed citizens and entrepreneurs.

“It will deliver to 12,000 beneficiaries informed trainings which will enable beneficiaries build and imbibe technical proficiency such as assembling, repairs, maintenance as well as technology skills and digital literacy across a wide range of electronic brands, products and technology which can be grouped into three areas – mobile devices, computing devices and commonly used electronic devices irrespective of their socio-economic backgrounds.

“It’s a programme that is open to all unemployed youths across the six geo-political zones. Each of the 12,000 targeted beneficiaries will be empowered to train 5,000 youths via a training platform which means they will need to translate the jobs to 60,000 additional jobs because each of the 12,000 is empowered to train five other youths via a training platform and engage them on his or her platform.

“The project is awarded to Messrs Softcam. It’s of nine months’ duration. Softcam will be working with officials of Social Investment Programme.

“It will cost N259,000 per youth for the training and N207,000 for work tools. Thereafter, once they are trained, they will set up their businesses. Each of the 12,000 beneficiaries will set up his/her business. The cost is N5.595 billion.

“The idea is to ensure that our youths are trained and capable of handling all these electronic equipment, ” Udoma said