In an effort to tackle youth unemployment, the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Education, has started free training of 26,000 youths nationwide under the Innovation Development and Effectiveness in the Acquisition of Skills (IDEAS) project. 

The 26,000 youths are the third cohort of the scheme which started last year and which saw about 8,000 participating in the first two cohorts. 

This is just as the World Bank, which is partnering the FG on the project, has lauded the effort, describing it as a bold move to tackle youth unemployment in the country. 

Giving kudos to the Federal Government during an inspection visit to one of the training centres in Lagos, the Wavecrest College of Hospitality, Surulere, Lagos, a training centre for the IDEAS Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) project, World Bank Practice Manager for Education for Africa, West and Central, Scherezad Latif, applauded the Federal Government for its commitment to tackling youth unemployment through investment in technical skills development. 

“Nigeria is one of our large programmes. I am here to look at the Minister’s TVET Initiative through a project called IDEAS. We are very proud and happy to be part of the government’s programme and to see all the results that have already been achieved through this programme,” she said. 

She expressed delight at what she saw, adding that the motivation and how the students spoke with clarity impressed her. An official of the Federal Ministry of Education, who is also the National Project Coordinator for the programme, Mrs Blessing Ehi Ogwu, said President Bola Tinubu-led government is focusing on TVET and skills acquisition to reduce unemployment, and remove youths from the streets. 

“This set is the third cohort. The programme started last year and the first two sets were trained last year. This cohort has about 26,000 beneficiaries and are being trained in various fields to acquire skills and not only be self sufficient but also employers of labour. The training is free and we have over 400 training centres nationwide. 

“The World Bank is supporting the programme and after the end of their training, beneficiaries will be given starter packs. Apart from that, the Bank of Industry has been mandated to given them soft loans. I enjoin the beneficiaries to take the training programme serious, ” she stated. 

The Deputy Provost, who is also the Coordinator of the IDEAS programme in the college, Ifeoma Nwabachili, said the programme aims to imbue students with skills to be able to work in the industry to get employment. 

“So, it’s a dual-sided project, training and employment. So, we are hoping that by the time we finish, everybody who is on this programme would have acquired the necessary catering and hospitality skills and then also get a job at least. 

“They will do three months training here, hands-on training, and they will do three months internship training in the industry,” she said. 

One of the beneficiaries, Ihedioha Ifeanyinchukwu, thanked the FG for the opportunity given them. The project is a key initiative of the administration of His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, under the Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritizes human capital development, youth empowerment, and sustainable economic growth