Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said yesterday said beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme trained and empowered in different trade areas would transform the economy.
He assured that the present administration would continue to create an enabling environment for the beneficiaries of the programme to actualise their aspirations.
Speaking in Lagos at the graduation ceremony for 137 beneficiaries, Osinbajo, represented by a director in his office, Lauren Braide, described the Amnesty Programme as a much-needed intervention developed and implemented as part of a larger developmental agenda for the Niger Delta region.
He told the graduates that there were opportunities for linkages with relevant agencies for loans, grants and technical support for their prospective businesses.
“I have no doubt that what you have learnt from this programme will translate into significant personal and professional advancement for you and into great benefit for your communities and for the Nigerian economy as a whole. The kinds of skills you have acquired in this programme are the backbone, the engine of Nigeria’s economy. Without our artisans, our technicians, our small business people, Nigeria’s economy would be a vastly less productive one,” he said.
Osinbajo reiterated the government’s commitment to fully implementing the New Vision for Niger Delta aimed at fast-tracking the development of the region and ensuring that communities and people in the region benefit from the wealth of their land.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the Coordinator of the Amnesty Programme, Prof. Charles Dokubo, said henceforth, beneficiaries of the programme would immediately be given starter packs at the end of their training to start their businesses.
“In my just over one year in office, the PAP has trained over 1, 500 delegates in vocational skills. In addition to the above, over 800 other delegates are undergoing various training programmes in about 20 qualified local training partners for duration of three to six months,” he said.
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