2,596 youths benefit from Delta skills acquisition scheme

From Nosa Akenzua, Asaba

The Delta State government has said that 2,596 youths were engaged in four years for Skills Aquisition Scheme in line with wealth creation through its twin projects: Skills Training Entrepreneurship Programme ( STEP) and Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme ( YAGEP) as critical tools for mitigating youth unemployment and enhancing entrepreneurship development in the state.
The state Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa who spoke to journalists in Asaba on Wednesday during an orientation workshop for 2019/2020 STEP trainers, said that over 4,200 previously unemployed Youths in the state had so far been trained,equiped and established to run their enterprises through the STEP and YAGEP platforms from 2015 to 2019.
Governor Okowa said that government had concluded plans to to raise the tally with additional 850 beneficiaries in the 2019 / 2020 Circle of the Job Creation Programme, adding that vivid breakdown of the Programme Circle within the period under review had shown that 1,329 Youths were engaged in the 2016/2017 Circle in both STEP and YAGEP.
On selection process for the 141trainers currently engaged by the state government, the Governor said that four critical modules which included: Capacity, Functionality, Willingness/ Availability as well as Accessibility were deployed, adding that out of the 294 applications received for the Position,213 were accredited, while only 141 of them were successful and engaged having scaled through the outlined module for selection.
In his remarks, the Chief Job Creation of the state, Professor Eric Eboh while Commending the state Governor for his sustained efforts in ensuring the success of the Programme, enjoined the trainers to raise up to their responsibilities in ensuring that the state government’s efforts were not undermined, adding” Job Creation office does not demand or take money of gifts for posting or Orientation of trainees to training Centres, Trainers should desist from giving gifts to staff in any guise whatsoever”