Over three thousand beneficiaries of the Federal Government’s N-Knowledge, N-Tech scheme from the South-West have received their tools of trade.
The tools, which included laptop computers and workstations, were handed over to them after the closing of the three-month intensive coaching at the Osun State College of Education, Ila Orangun.
Presenting the tools to the beneficiaries, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajia Sadiya Umar Farouk explained that the N-Knowledge, N-Tech were components of the N-Power programme focused on equipping young Nigerians with relevant skills and certification to become competent workers, innovators and entrepreneurs prepared for both the domestic and global digital job market.
Represented by an Assistant Director in the Ministry, Mr Olufemi Popoola, the minister stated that the N-Knowledge programme would up-skill twenty thousand young Nigerians on the global radar as exporters of world-class services and content in the creative and information technology sectors.
She said the training component was targeted at developing competencies of the youth in software development and hardware training which would be catalyzed as well as the groundwork to make Nigeria compete in the outsourcing market for software development.
Hajia Farouk added that the programme would develop the skills and capacities along the skills set in the value chain of mobile apps and website development and start the talent development effort for the growth of the information technology industry in Nigeria.
The minister stressed that the participants who had been in centralized in-camp training for 3 months would also undergo a 6-month apprenticeship during which they would be exposed to more practical details.
Also speaking, one of the facilitators of the programme, Mr Bolarin Oyetunji explained that during the three-month intensive training, the participants were exposed to software development, animation and scriptwriting.
Mr Oyetunji said the six month period of apprenticeship would enable them to have more fieldwork exposure and mentorship, while he added that they would be connected to film production organizations that may require their new skills.
Persons with Disabilities were not left out of the programme, one of them, Mr Adewuyi Omotoso who was full of appreciation to the Federal Government, affirmed that such programme had rekindled the hope of a better tomorrow for people in his category.
Similarly, Miss Ayinde Temitope also received appealed to the government not to rest on its oars in ensuring that Nigerian youths were skillfully empowered.
Participants in the programme who were majorly graduates of intermediary education programmes were drawn from all states in the South-West.
Adenitan Akinola
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