By PATRICK ABANG, Calabar-
In its continued drive towards the actualization of its mandate of Poverty alleviation, Employment generation and wealth creation, the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) has flag off the training of 50 unemployed women across the state in two trendy skills, confectionery making as well as souvenir making.
The exercise which seeks to empower the women with the requisite skills that will enable them to start businesses of their own upon graduation was organized by the Women Employment Branch WEB of the Directorate.
Speaking at the flag off/orientation ceremony of the scheme at the conference hall of the Federal Secretariat Calabar, the Director General of the NDE in his keynote address reiterated that it is in line with the mandate of the NDE which is geared towards providing gainful self employment to the teeming unemployed youths of the country that among other schemes, the NDE through the Women Employment Branch, embarked on this exercise to actualize this mandate of the Directorate.
The Director General who was represented by the state Coordinator of the NDE Cross River State, Udam Gabriel Ugbashi, added that the NDE has carefully selected these beneficiaries from the teeming unemployed youths population based on their interest on the skills sets, gender, age and both federal constituencies and Senatorial districts.
Earlier in his welcome address, the state Coordinator, informed the beneficiaries to consider themselves lucky to be selected from the teeming unemployed in the state and urged them put to proper use the tools and equipment in their care while in training in order to achieve the utmost while in training.
In his welcome address, the Coordinator, who was represented by an Assistant Director and the Head of Department of the Rural Employment promotions department of the NDE Michael Ugbong, added that having put in so much resources in the funding of the exercise by the federal government via the NDE, the beneficiaries should put in their best and make sure that the objective of the training is achieved.
In his goodwill message to the trainees, the Director of the Small Scale Enterprise Department Babatunde Alao admonished the trainees to understand that while the NDE owe them an obligation to empower them with the requisite skills to succeed, they also owe the Nation the obligation to learn, understand and put what they are being taught into practices in order to enable them establish businesses of their own.
The Director, who was represented by the Head of the Women Employment branch of the state office, Mrs. Irene Eyo lta, further, informed the trainees that they will be empowered with starter packs at the end of the training to enable them start their own business.
One of the beneficiaries of the scheme, Ms Theresa Asuquo thanked the Federal Government for finding them worthy to be part of the exercise. He promised on behalf of her colleagues that they will put in their best to make sure that the investment of the Federal Government in the exercise will not be in vain.
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