FG to create 20m jobs in Buhari’s second tenure – Minister

The federal government plans to create 20 million jobs to reduce unemployment in the second tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelamah, disclosed this in Abuja on Monday at a stakeholders meeting on job creation organised by the Industrial Training Fund (ITF).

The minister, who was represented by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Sunday Edet Akpan, said the Federal Government would create the jobs from the four key sectors of the economy: Agriculture, Construction, Transport and the Services sectors.

The minister said that with the huge level of unemployment in the country, it had become imperative to come up with a pragmatic approach to creating jobs for the people.

He said the ministry had directed the Industrial Training Fund to come up with innovative solutions to create 20 million jobs in four sectors of the economy within the next four years.

“In order to sustain and build on the successes recorded in this regard in the first tenure of Mr. President, we are articulating and strategising with a renewed impetus towards combating the twin evils of unemployment and insecurity,” the Minister said.

The Director General of the ITF, Sir Joseph Ari, said the ITF has equipped over 450,000 Nigerians with life skills and empowered all the beneficiaries with start-up kits within the last two years.

He said: “over 80 percent of these numbers today are earning sustainable livelihoods either in the paid employment or are successful entrepreneurs who are even employing others. The stories are similar in a number of agencies with mandates to empower Nigerians with skills for employability and growth.”