By Nosa Akenzua, Asaba
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta has said that the State Government had trained and empowered no fewer than 100,000 youths to become entrepreneurs in the last six years.
He stated this in a state broadcast to mark his 6th anniversary in office as governor.
According to the governor, with the goal of “Prosperity for All Deltans’’, our administration from the onset took swift and decisive actions on the issue of youth unemployment.
He said that the large army of unemployed graduates and secondary school leavers was a clear danger to the peace and security of the state hence his administration resolved to work towards making them job creators instead of job seekers.
Okowa said that the job creation programme was impacting positively on the growth and development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSMEs) sub-sector in the state.
“As an administration, we were clear what needed to be done – equip these young people with the requisite technical know-how, vocational skills, values and resources to become employable and self-employed.
“To drive this process, we established the Technical and Vocational Education Board and created a special purpose vehicle, the Office of the Chief Job Creation Officer.
“After six years, we can be proud of the progress we have made in this regard with the successful training of at least 100, 000 persons to start up their own businesses.
“The impact of these programmes is already being felt with hundreds of MSMEs springing up across the state, leading to poverty reduction and improved living standards for our people.”
