The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) says it will provide entrepreneurial skills to 40 prisoners, IDPs and retirees.

According to a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja by Monday Ewans, a director at SMEDAN, there will be four-day training scheduled to begin on Monday across six states (Ondo, Niger, Katsina, Imo, Borno and Rivers).

The beneficiaries would get empowerment materials for the start-up or scaling of their enterprises, said the statement and disclosed that raising employment levels among youths required a skill-based training model essential in making a smooth and sustainable transition to employment.

“This alternative educational path fosters skills acquisition and development for professional working life. It creates self-reliance and reduces the issues of social unrest, unemployment and dependency,” the SMEDAN statement added.

It expressed concern that despite the growing economic empowerment programmes, youths continue to experience unequal access to education and skills development.

“More so, as insecurity affects the country, a lot of Nigerians are forced to vacate their ancestral homes into temporary abodes called internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps,” noted SMEDAN. “In these camps, all the persons are not given the opportunity to be exposed to the acquisition of livelihood skills (entrepreneurship and vocational) to enable them to return to financially independent lives after the camp experience.”

The agency added that many public servants spent their lives serving the nation without having the opportunity of acquiring livelihood skills that would support them after retirement.

“Most of them run into serious problems and even die from lack of financial resources, illness and the like. It is important to provide an opportunity for this set of people to acquire skills that will make them relevant during their post-retirement years,” SMEDAN explained.

According to the agency, the programme promotes skills development among IDPs, prison inmates and retirees.

(NAN)