The Commissioner for Commerce, Industry, Cooperatives and Empowerment in Osun State, Dr. Bode Olaonipekun has disclosed that the state government plans to generate 15,000 jobs annually through the advancement of vocational and technical training to cushion the impact COVID-19 on the socio-economic activities of the state.
Olaonipekun disclosed this shortly after a technical meeting he held with the leadership of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN) and the management of the Industrial Development Centre, in Osogbo, according to a statement issued by Governor Adegboyega Oyetola’s media aide, Ismaila Omipidan.
In his words “The target is to ensure that we generate 15,000 jobs annually directly or indirectly as we are confident on the possibility of this because we have a governor who is ready to support us, who is willing to resuscitate the economy and ensure that everyone is okay.
The training consultant also said “We will be partnering with the state government to conduct the training ranging from skills acquisition on entrepreneurship training and indeed organising grants and soft loans for the participants. “We are already discussing with international donor partners to ensure the success of the programme since the essence of the programme is to ensure that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic which is seeing people losing their jobs are reduced,”
Mr. Gbenga Ogundeji, the Southwest Zonal Coordinator of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN), commended the state government for its efforts towards empower the people. The initiative, according to him, has the potential to create job for the people and will also empower the beneficiaries to employ others.
“We have collaborated with the state government to revive the economy by ensuring that the facilities at this centre are put to good use, and with the zeal from the government, we are confident that the dreams would be actualised”, Ogundeji added.
