IBILE Foundation in partnership with the Nigerian German Centre and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment has recently concluded a week-long training for youths across Lagos State.
The free training for youths featured training sessions on Wig Making and Generator repair for 30 selected applicants across Lagos and was conducted at the Agidingbi venue of Fields of Skills and Dreams VTE.
Speaking at the closing ceremony for trainers, Barr Ayo Adebusoye, representative of IBILE Foundation explained that IBILE Foundation has decided to organize the training which was implemented by the Nigerian German Centre and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment because of the need to address the rate of unemployment among youths and equip them with the right skills.
Barr Adebusoye said, “one of the things IBILE Foundation is committed to do is transforming the youths and we saw a lot of passionate youths who want to do things for themselves and for Nigeria, but there is no opportunity to do so.
“The choice of training programmes was made because they would create immediate employment opportunities for the trainees. Many people use generators in Nigeria because of the state of electricity supply in the country and those involved in generator repair would benefit greatly from it. For the wig, there’s a huge market for it and it requires little resources to start.”
He also noted that starter parks were given to all trainees to ensure they make a business out of what they’ve learnt, adding that, “We need more of this kind of training so that young persons can be able to get involved in vocation that can address the rate of unemployment in the country.”
Barr Adebusoye appreciated Nigerian German Centre and Federal Ministry of Labour & Employment for partnering with IBILE Foundation to train the youths and for instilling the right vocational skills in all trainees.
One of the beneficiaries, Motunrayo Badmus who learnt wig making expressed her appreciation to IBILE Foundation, the Nigerian German Centre and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment for the initiative which she described as helpful to young persons across Lagos State.
She said, “I have been given the basic skills in wig making and I am not waiting to be a professional before I start making money from it, I believe that my knowledge would expand as I dive deeper into the business.”
Badmus noted that all trainees were given free starter park and as a wig making trainee, she received 2 dummy, attachments, wig stand, hand dryer, needles and thread, apron, nose mask, crochet pin, wig stand, jotter, bag, free lunch throughout the training and transport allowance.
Further illustrating that the training opportunity is one like no other, Badmus mentioned that all trainees have been given the opportunity to register their business names for free, courtesy of IBILE Foundation.
Also speaking to BONews Service, Ruth Ekoja, who learnt Generator Repair shared that the training has given her the opportunity to gain knowledge in the mechanical world generally.
She said, “with what I have learnt, I can service a generator, I can troubleshoot, I can identify if a generator is having a mechanical or electrical error so as to know where my focus will be when I encounter such and this training has helped me to be able to identify some tools and it’s usage”.
Ekoja hopes to be an employer of labour as she would recruit more people to work in her workshop which she plans to set up.
The only man who enrolled for wig making during the training session, Kazeem Agbalaya also shared that the opportunity has made him learn what he has been aspiring to learn for a long time. He appreciated the foundation for the support to young persons in Lagos State.
Another trainee, Olufemi Ogunbowale who learnt Generator Repairs said the training has been very interesting and stated that, “I had no knowledge on how the generator is coupled but with the training I can now dismantle and couple the generator.”
