National Directorate of Employment (NDE), on Monday in Rivers, commenced training for 130 women on different skills to generate employment, create wealth and alleviate poverty in the state.
Speaking at the flag-off of Women Employment Branch (WEB) in Port Harcourt, Director-General of NDE, Abubakar Fikpo, said that the training was designed to reduce the rate of unemployment in the country.
The Fikpo was represented by the acting NDE Coordinator in the state, Mrs Maureen Okeji.
He stated that the training, with three different skills, cut across all the 23 local government areas in the state and involved all the women residing in Rivers and in the 36 states of the federation.
Fifty women will be trained on tying and dye, 50 on events management, tying of Gele and 30 others on natural organic products, bead and perfume making.
According to Fikpo, the skills are the ones in vogue among women across the federation, adding that one of the organisation’s mandates is to generate employment, create wealth and alleviate poverty.
“It is NDE’s desire to ensure that women are trained across the nation to be self-employed and that is why the training is free.
“The President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is doing its best to generate employment through skills acquisition. It has invested in paying trainers to impact skills on the beneficiaries of these empowerment programmes.
“The aim of this is for women to be empowered, create wealth and empower others, and they will be given a token of N25,000 each after the training,” the director-general said.
He urged the participants to take the training seriously for it to achieve its aim.
Also speaking, the Field Officer, Federal Department of Fisheries, Mrs Ifeyinwa James, applauded the federal government for organising the training, especially for women, stressing that they (women) were multipliers of seeds, when given the opportunity.
James assured that more women would become chief executive officers and wealth builders at the end of the training.
She encouraged the participants to take the training seriously and remain committed, dedicated, determined and disciplined to achieve the aim of the programme.
One of the participants, Mrs Edith Walson, commended the federal government and NDE for bringing succour to them.
Walson assured that they would make good use of the training period to acquire skills that would empower more women in the country.
