Managing director of the National Hydro Power Producing Area Development Commission (N-HYPPADEC) Abubakar Sadiq Yelwa has said the commission would establish an entrepreneurship and empowerment unit as part of a medium-term plan for youth empowerment.
He stated this yesterday at a ceremony for distribution of starter-packs for 1,500 youths from Niger State who underwent skills acquisition and entrepreneurship training.
The managing director said 5,000 youths from the benefitting states underwent the training and all received their packs with the last distribution taking place in Niger State.
He said, “We are mooting the idea of establishing an Entrepreneurship and Empowerment Unit in the commission (which is part of our medium-term strategic plan). The unit will be responsible for coordinating all our activities associated with entrepreneurship, empowerment and job creation.
“We are also working to incorporate advanced skills acquisition trainings into the programme. The advanced trainings would target unemployed degree holders. We would take beneficiaries through three years of apprenticeship, with the aim of retooling them with skills that would assist them in setting up their own enterprises,” he said.
Yelwa said the training would target advanced skills such as laptop and phone repairs, solar power installation, CCTV installation, electrical installation, computer programming, web development, copywriting and editing.
While acknowledging roles of the Institute of Technology and Innovation (MITI), National Directorate of Employment (NDE) and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) for the success of the first phase of the programme, he lauded efforts of President Bola Tinubu and Governor Mohammed Bago for their support.
