Over 8,300 youths across Anambra State have graduated from the second batch of the state government’s ‘1Youth2Skills plus’ programme, with beneficiaries receiving part of the N3.5 billion empowerment grant disbursed under the scheme.
The ‘1Youth2Skills’ initiative is a capacity-building programme designed to train young people in areas such as agriculture, ICT, fashion, crafts, services, cake making, and other sectors to help them develop sustainable careers and businesses.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony held at the International Convention Centre, Awka, on Tuesday, the Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, said the programme was in line with his campaign promise of empowering youths. He noted that N3.5 billion was set aside to support their business ambitions.
According to the governor, “Today, I celebrate the graduation of 8,300 young men and women from the second batch of our ‘1Youth2Skills plus’ programme. This initiative is revolutionising youth empowerment in Nigeria, focusing on productive, innovative, and export-driven ventures. We have disbursed N3.5 billion in grants to support their business dreams. Our goal is to make Anambra the skill hub of Sub-Saharan Africa. To our graduands, I say: start small, start now, think big! You have been equipped with the skills, funding, and mentorship. Now it’s your turn to shine! I am excited to see the impact you will make in our state and beyond. Congratulations. May Anambra continue to win!”
He recalled that the programme was launched in October 2022, stressing that it was aimed at producing 1,000 youth millionaires annually. He described it as “stomach infrastructure on a sustainable basis.” Soludo further explained that more than 183,000 applications were received for the scheme and added that additional funds running into billions of naira have been made available through the Anambra Small Business Agency to give loans to interested beneficiaries.
The Commissioner for Youth Development, Patrick Aghamba, expressed delight at the growth of the programme, stating that it is transforming the lives and destinies of young people across the state.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the OneYouthTwoSkills Entrepreneurship Scheme, Prof. Chinedu Onyeizugbe, said the programme recorded a 48 per cent increase in participation and should be seen as a model for other states. He noted that each graduation marks progress toward building a future where every Anambra youth is equipped with survival skills.
Some of the beneficiaries testified that the initiative has helped them become employers of labour, while others said it gave them the opportunity to pursue business ideas they could not have achieved alone.
It will be recalled that the first cohort in 2023 empowered 5,000 youths with N2 billion start-up support, with more than 1,000 already running thriving ventures across the state.