Plateau State Governor Simon Bako Lalong has flagged-off the engagement of 17,000 Nigerian citizens into the special public works programme in the state on behalf of the Federal Government.
According to Lalong, 1,000 people have been selected from each of the 17 local government areas of the state.
While flagging off the programme at the Township School in Jos, the Commissioner of Environment, Yakubu Idi, who represented the governor, said the 17,000 beneficiaries, who were carefully selected from their various communities, were among the 774, 000 people set to be enrolled in the programme.
The governor told the beneficiaries that the programme was designed to reduce unemployment and therefore should not be misused. He thanked the federal government for initiating the exercise, especially at this critical moment.
Director General of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), Malam Abubakar Nuhu Fikpo, represented by Mrs. Linda Barau, said the programme was meant to create mass employment and cushion the effect of the COVID-19, particularly for unskilled citizens, adding that no formal education was required to be enrolled.
