FCTA Will Continue To Support Entrepreneur Development – Adayilo

…Commends Wike, AEA for training of young Entrepreneurs

By: Sunday Shekwonya

The Acting Head of Civil Service of the Federal Capital Administration (FCTA), Mrs. Grace Adayilo, has pledged the support of the FCT Administration to entreprenuerial skills development for all residents of the Territory, especially the youth in order to imbibe in them skills necessary for self reliance.

Adayilo, said it is important for young Nigerians to be equipped with skills that would enable them compete in today’s global society where innovation and creativity drive the economy of any nation.

The Head of Civil Service, FCT, represented by the Director, Information and Communication, FCT, Muhammad Hazat Sule, stated this during the Grand Finale of the second batch of 2024 Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (YEP), Friday, at the Abuja Enterprise Agency (AEA) Office, Mabushi District, Abuja.

She said the effort of the FCT Administration is to create opportunities through development of socio-economic programmes, which are designed to foster an inclusive society and create an enabling environment for everyone to succeed.

She disclosed that the Abuja Enterprise Agency was set up as an FCT vehicle for enterprise development, mandated to develop and implement programmes aimed at fostering job opportunities and engendering economic prosperity.

Adayilo emphasized that the Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (YEP) is conceived by the FCT Administration out of the desire and enthusiasm to encourage the culture of entrepreneurship and self-reliance amongst the National Youth Service Corps Members (NYSC) to build their entrepreneurial capacity and job creation.

She revealed that through the support of the FCT Administration, AEA has successfully trained 58 youths inclusive of Graduates and Serving Corps Members from various Organizations at the Second Batch of 2024 Youth Entrepreneurship Programme with several significant business orientations.

The Acting Head of Civil Service also commended the FCT Minister, Barr. Nyesom Wike, for his zeal in developing Abuja, not only in the area of infrastructure, but equally in the area of human capital development.

She insisted that by approving the training of young Nigerians in entrepreneurial skills, the Minister has shown his love for the socio-economic development of the youth of the Territory, who are the leaders of tomorrow.

Speaking earlier, the mandate Secretary, Economic Planning Revenue Generation, and Puplic Private Partnership (EPRGP), Mr. Ubokutom Nya, represented by the Director Legal, in the EPRGP Secretariat, Mr. Harisu Umar, said it is a revolutionary era where entrepreneurial skills must be properly embraced in order to improve the socio-economic lives of the residents of FCT.

Nya, who emphasized that any individual who fail to plan, has succeeded in planning to fail; commended AEA for showing the FCT residents, especially the younger ones the right path to follow by training them on entrepreneurship skills.

He said that the EPRGP Secretariat will always give its maximum support to the Agency and will continue to encourage programmes that are geared towards improving the economic prospects and well-being of the residents of the Territory, particularly the youth so as to obtain the entrepreneurial skills, which will in turn improve the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

In his remark at the occasion, the Acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Abuja Enterprise Agency, Mr. Chudi Ugwuada-Ezirigwe, said the training by the Agency has enhance the youth with entrepreneurial knowledge and build in them, the capacity to innitiate, develop and run a successful businesses; thereby, making them global future job creators.

Ugwuada-Ezirigwe, who enjoined the trainees,majorly Corp Members to put to use what they have learned from the training, said the YEP is a modern way of training youth; adding that there are no white colar jobs anywhere.

He revealed that YEP since its inception in 2020, has succeeded in training and equipping more than 2000 Corp Members, building them with capacity to become successful job creators and improve the living standard of the residents.

The Grand Finale witnessed the participation of Eight young entrepreneurs with various innovations and creativivity in business models competing for the prime position.

At the end of their presentations, Nnaemeka Afoma, a Covenant University Graduate, who innovated the business idea, ‘One Stop Wash’emerged as the winner of the most suitable and prospective, profitable business concept.

The second and third positions were also won by various participants who went home with various sum of money donated by AEA and a promise for support by other federal government agencies as well as cooperate entities.