MinDiver Graduates Advanced Master Jeweller Trainees

The Ministry of Solid Minerals Development entrepreneurship and empowerment scheme in jewelry making, which is supported by the Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification (MinDiver) Project, has graduated its Advanced Master Jewelers and presented them certificates on completion of the Advanced Gemstone and Jewelry Making Master Training Programme.

The graduated trainees completed their programme on November 3, 2023.

The ministry’s MinDiver Project had graduated and empowered 71 trainees in Batches 1, 2 and 3 of the specialised master training programme for gemstone, jewellery making, and design since the empowerment programme commenced in November 2021.

MinDiver project coordinator, Engr. Sallim Salaam, told journalists that the advanced class became necessary following realisation that some of the graduates who excelled needed additional training to bridge the knowledge and skill gap in the jewelry industry in the country,

He said the programmer was part of efforts of the federal government to develop the downstream sector of the mining industry in a bid to achieve the diversification of Nigeria’s economy,

According to him, out of the 71 that have graduated from the skills acquisition and empowerment programme, a combination of 25 graduated in October and on November 30, as advanced trainees.

“The 25 were drawn from batches 1, 2 and 3 of the master training programme and were further trained for additional eight weeks to qualify as advanced graduates. Batch 3 had 15 advanced graduate trainees while Batches 1 and 2 had 10 of five each,” he said, adding that the idea was also to fulfill one of MinDiver’s strategic goals of the intervention to regenerate the mining spectrum in the country and contribute to the economic diversification efforts of the government.

“Part of the mandate of the MinDiver Project is to facilitate the process of value-addition to mineral products, and the gemstone and jewellery training is an important activity in achieving the set goals,” he said.

Engr. Salaam further stated that the advanced training further underscores World Bank’s support in developing Nigerians creativity, entrepreneurship skills and desire to facilitate the growth of small and medium-scale enterprises in the jewellery industry value chain.

While responding to the issue of sustainability, he revealed that the MinDiver Project was laying the groundwork for Batch 4 of the entrepreneurship programme so as to empower more youths with the life-changing trade skills.