A total of 500 Nigerian youths now have the skills to successfully start and run their own businesses, following a training by Alliance for Youth Nigeria, as part of activities to mark its second year anniversary and this year’s International Youth Day.
In collaboration with Whitefield Foundation, Alliance for youth Nigeria trained and graduated this year’s beneficiaries in Kano in the North and Ibadan in the West to commemorate the 2023 International Youth Day and celebrate its second-year anniversary.
This year’s commemoration of International Youth Day under the theme “green skills for youth: Towards a sustainable world” presented the alliance the opportunity to showcase its contributions to reduce youth unemployment.
Since its launch in August 2021, Alliance for Youth Nigeria has empowered over 16,000 young people with employability and entrepreneurial trainings, internship and mentoring opportunities to equip them to find meaningful employment or create their own enterprise.
Its membership include Nestlé Nigeria, Jobberman Nigeria, Big Bottling Company, the United Nations Global Compact Network Nigeria and U-Connect HR Limited with the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund and Activate Success International as partner organisations.
The beneficiaries join more than 15,000 others who have been trained by the alliance since its formation in 2021.
Trainees were pooled from Kano in the North west and Ibadan in the South West of Nigeria.
The participants received training in Solar energy and their installation, Graphics Design and Social Media Management, Beauty Care (make-up, aromatherapy and massage) and Web Development and Digital Marketing.
Also, the alliance equipped exceptional participants with start-up kits to start their businesses.
‘Engine for growth’
The President of the Alliance and Program Manager Partnerships, Jobberman Nigeria, Ahmed Alaga, said the organisations that came together to form the alliance were driven by the recognition that young people are the engine for growth and development and a huge resource and great asset for national advancement.
According to him, “The Alliance for Youth Nigeria is committed to supporting young Nigerians with the skills, trainings and knowledge that will increase their chances of getting gainful employment opportunities or becoming entrepreneurs, unleashing their true potential.”
Young people aged 30 years and younger make up about 70 percent of Nigeria’s population but due to difficulty in finding jobs, the country misses the opportunity to tap into their potential for economic development.
Unemployment within this segment stands at about 53.7 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Alliance for Youth Nigeria says its members continue to invest in joint and individual projects to give young Nigerians meaningful work experience.
They also remain committed to contributing towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 8 – to promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all by 2030 and Goal 17, Partnerships for the Goals.
Mutually Beneficial
In her comment at the Ibadan event, the Secretary of the Alliance and Senior Manager, Participant Engagement & Programmes, UN Global Compact Nigeria Network, Tumi Onamade, said investing in the youth is mutually beneficial.
“At the United Nations Global Compact Network Nigeria, we recognize that scaling up action and investing in the youth not only creates economic opportunities but also helps businesses grow and stay sustainable,” she said.
In his address to participants at the Ibadan event, Vice President of the Alliance and Country HR Manager, Nestlé Nigeria PLC, Shakiru Lawal, urged the youths who were gifted start-up kits to use the skills to improve their lives and positively impact their communities.
“At the United Nations Global Compact Network Nigeria, we recognize that scaling up action and investing in the youth not only creates economic opportunities but also helps businesses grow and stay sustainable,” he said.
Transformative training
Beneficiaries of the training in Kano and Ibadan were upskilled in Solar panel installation, Graphics Design and Social Media Management, Beauty Care (make-up, aromatherapy and massage) and Web Development and Digital Marketing. The alliance equipped exceptional participants with start-up kits to start their businesses immediately.
High-flyers from the graphics design and digital marketing trainings were provided laptops, those from the Beauty, massage and aromatherapy training were provided make-up tool kits and massage beds; and high-flyers from the solar panel installation trainings were awarded complete toolboxes for their vocation.
Expressing his delight on behalf of his colleagues, 34-year-old Mustapha Fasasi, who participated in the solar panel installation training at the Ibadan center, said, “Thanks to the facilitators,the training is of huge benefit to us as it was very easy to understand and implement. We are deeply grateful to the Alliance for investing in upskilling young people and further awarding those of us who excelled at the training with start-up kits. We promise to maximally deploy the skills and tools to commence our businesses”.
For her part, Mariya Ahmad Jibrin, who participated in the Kano training in the graphics design category expressed her gratitude to the Alliance for the experience which has equipped her with the skills to create impactful designs.
She added that the laptop provided to her as a start-up kit was an invaluable and treasured support for her business.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, restated its resolve to continue to champion policies that will promote youth development, particularly in employment creation and entrepreneurship.
“With the huge number of youth entering the labour market annually in Nigeria, and limited job opportunities in the formal sector, skills based entrepreneurship remains a viable option for economic empowerment, job creation especially in the small and medium enterprise sector, and improvement of the general standard of living,” the Permanent Secretary, Abubakar Ismail said in a statement.
