The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) has graduated 416 youths under the Environmental Beautification Training Scheme (EBTS) to enable them start and grow their businesses as Budding Landscaping Service Operators and disburse equipments and cash component to beneficiaries across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Speaking during the disbursement ceremony yesterday in Bauchi, the Director General of NDE, Dr Nasiru Mohammed Ladan Argungu, said that the training was for the Directorate to unlock the participants’ potentials as leaders, to take the country into the future and to maximize the qualities of their lives.
The DG who was represented by Ali Lawan Yaya, Bauchi State Coordinator of NDE, said the tools and cash gifts was to help them start and grow their businesses as Budding Landscaping Service Operators that would translate into boosting job creation and spur the youths to contribute to the national economic growth.
He stressed that: “The NDE has been strongly supportive and has consistently invested in Nigerian youths. It has used the EBTS initiative to offer youthful school leavers employable skills and knowledge”
“The employment prospect of graduates of this programme is excellent. They are equipped with the necessary skills required by the construction industry. Hence, they are open to exploring diverse opportunities to provide services to projects in the sector,”
The NDE boss also reiterated the Agency’s resolve to support and promote investments in the youths.
“My management and I wish to congratulate our vibrant budding entrepreneurs for their sense of responsibility, independence, self-realization and the capacity for their actualization and fulfillment built on the confidence of a brighter tomorrow.”
“Remember in your sub-conscious minds that these loans we are giving out to business owners come with price. Therefore, you must imbibe the culture of discipline, good customer relation and continuous learning and improvement”, Argungu added.
The skills acquired at the programme include: environmental renewal, sanitation, protection and beautification, ornamentation to finishing of structures, grassing and ornamental tree planting, habitat conservation amongst others.
He explained that NDE has several job creation schemes that youth can key into, urging other youths to avail themselves of the opportunities by participating in NDE programmes.
Argungu further called on all well meaning Nigerians to collaborate with the NDE for the task of job creation.
In his speech, Bauchi State Coordinator of NDE, Alhaji Ali Lawan, promised to award the graduating participants contracts of landscaping and Plaster Of Paris (POP) in his office; adding that the DG has approved the complete renovation of the state office.
In the 2018 Environmental Beautification Training Scheme (EBTS) in Bauchi State, it was learnt that 11 youths had so far benefited in the scheme.
