Visioned Skills Development Centre, a non-governmental organisation, says it has concluded arrangements to issue grants to 21,000 entrepreneurs in Bayelsa State through the World Bank unemployment reduction scheme.
Apostle Israel Kama, the Chief Executive Officer, VSDC, made this known in Yenagoa, the state capital, on Friday, where about 2,000 participants attended a seminar organised by the NGO in conjunction with the Social Exchange Market.
He said that the scheme, tagged ‘Bottom-up project’ is aimed at reducing the unemployment rate in Nigeria as well as promoting entrepreneurial skills among the people.
He said the special grants would be sourced through the SEM under the supervision of VSDC, for the implementation of the ‘bottom-up’ strategy of the World Bank project.
Kama said beneficiaries of the scheme could get grants as high as N10m to start small businesses that would be supervised by VSDC all-year round for sustainability.
Kama stated, “Grants all over the world are always needed for a particular purpose to advance human development. The purpose of this particular grant available in Nigeria now is for economic revolution.
“Ordinary Nigerians must be given the opportunity to offer solution to one challenge or another in order to drive our economy forward. Life every where is full of challenges. Various solutions to challenges of life generate self reliance; employment opportunities and wealth creation.
“But huge percentage of ordinary Nigerians do not have what it takes to access capital either for business start-up or business standardisation thereby relying on government for source of employment. Economy of all the advanced nations is driven by people not government.
“Government only makes favourable policies that enable people to do such driving and that is what the government of Nigeria has done by the establishment of Development Bank Of Nigeria to create diverse opportunities for ordinary Nigerians to participate in economic diversification.
“Visioned Skill Development Centre mobilizes our members’ various project/business all over the country through our coordinators and submit them to Social Exchange Market where your Naira is your labour and productivity to be funded.
“Under the watch of Visioned Skills Development Centre, we are using this grant to promote agricultural development; manufacturing; production of finished goods; processing of raw materials of various kinds and skills and talent-driven market.
“The age range is between 16 and 65 years. Education is not and will never be a barrier to this project. All necessary assistance shall be provided for any of our members who need such especially in project execution guide steps.”
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