BATN Empowers 60 Unemployed Graduates in Ogun

Source from:  Nigerian Tribune  07/01/2014

British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation (BATNF)  has announced that it had trained over 60 unemployed graduates under its Start-Up Ogun Youth Enterprise Training - Young Farmers' Version, designed to empower youths in the area.

The executive director of the foundation, Mrs Oluwasoromidayo George, disclosed that the foundation had identified the agrarian status of the state and decided to invest in the agriculture value chain, including investment in agriculture-based entrepreneurship for jobless youths, in fulfillment of BAT's corporate social responsibility.

She explained that the training, empowerment and mentorship on agriculture-based enterprises were designed to foster creativity  in business idea development and business networking promotion geared towards the creation of both direct and indirect jobs.

"It is my pleasure to inform you that the one-week programme which keyed into the 'Start-Up Ogun' programme of the state government, has successfully trained 60 youths of the state in acquiring requisite skills in developing their entrepreneurship skills, fostering creativity and innovativeness in business idea development and promoting networking and opportunity sharing among participants.

"It is worthy to mention that this is not the first time the Foundation is implementing projects in Ogun State, we have implemented four projects before now, three agriculture projects and one water project between 2006 and 2012. 

"Currentlt,we also  have two more projects which are work- in- progress. This will include the establishment of poultry farms in the four divisions of the state and a Cassava project in  Ilugun, Ijebu North-East Local Government Area of the state,"  Mrs George declared.

Also speaking, Ogun State Commissioner of commerce and Industry, Bimbo Ashiru,  tasked the trainees to leverage on the  Bank of Industry and Ogun State government N1 billion SMEs loan.

Ashiru, whose ministry worked with the British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation and the Kinderlech Centre on the Start-Up Ogun Youth Enterprise Training, declared that the state government would continue to expand its initiatives in wealth creation and employment generation. Enditem