No fewer than 1,495 of 2017 Batch B have been trained under the Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Anambra.
Mr Ebenezer Olawale, the Coordinator of NYSC in the state, declared the SAED programme close at the Umunya Temporary Camp site on Saturday.
Olawale said the programme, which was started by the NYSC in 2012, was geared towards empowering Corps members with marketable and entrepreneurial skills as a solution to scarce job opportunities in the country.
He urged them to be in touch with their instructors as the one week training on camp was not enough to give them all they needed to know about their chosen areas of interest.
“The purpose of this training is to equip you with marketable skills that can engage you economically before you get that white collar job.
“Hold on to this training and develop it because if you follow it with passion, you can be job creators yourselves,” he said.
In her remark, Mrs Ifeyinwa Nwafor, the Camp Director, said the Corps members were trained on 11 skill areas, including pastries, fashion design, shoe making and fisheries.
Nwafor said they were also exposed to business proposals writing, funds sourcing, marketing and idea development.
She wished them well as they concluded the orientation programme and urged them to create value in the society with the knowledge they garnered.
Some of the Corps members who took part in the training, lauded the NYSC for the discipline and knowledge they received on campaign and promised to build on them.
Miss Grace Ogbu, who studied Microbiology, said she could now start leather bag business because of the exposure.
Ogbu said with about N5,000 materials, she could produce purses and bags that would fetch her three times the capital within a short period.
She said she had looked forward to seeking a paid job but was no longer afraid of joblessness because of the business idea that she had received in the last one week.
Another trainee, Mr Chibueze Nwakaji, a graduate of Electrical Electronics Engineering, said apart from developing equipment like solar panels, converters and programming devices, he could now take it to business level.
Nwakaji said the lessons by the Bank of Industry and Central Bank of Nigeria on business financing were useful as he needed about N4 million to start up a business in electrical manufacturing.
That various SAED groups did short presentations on their products which they all pleaded for good business environment by the government, for them to excel.
