![L-R: Managing Director, BGL Securities Limited, Arnold A. Dublin-Green; Assistant Vice President, Financial Derivatives Limited, Dr. Ifeoma Nwokolo; CEO, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise [CPPE], Muda Yusuf (speaker); Chairman of the Occasion, Chief Paul Usoro; Dean, Lagos Business School, Information Systems, Prof. Olayinka David-West; Managing Director/CEO, Financial Derivatives Company, Bismarck Rewane; Group Chief Branding & Communications Officer, Dangote Industries Limited, Anthony Chiejina at Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals IPO Roadshow tagged “Back to where it all began” in Port Harcourt. Rivers State on Monday, October 12, 2026…](https://pmparrotng.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Dangote-imagee-180x135.jpg "As Dangote Refinery’s IPO Nears Close, Small Investors Take Center Stage")
The federal government is set to empower 200 youths in Oyo State with practical, marketable skills and start-up tools aimed at improving their economic prospects and supporting sustainable livelihoods.
The training programme to be carried out through the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS) is being implemented under the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational, and Entrepreneurship Education (OSSAP-TVEE) and will run from September 28 to October 9, 2026.
The initiative will commence with the Oyo State phase and will subsequently be replicated across the six geopolitical zones of the country to widen access to vocational training, start-up tools and sustainable livelihood opportunities for more young Nigerians.
Participants will be trained across three tracks—Graphics and Artificial Intelligence, AI, Makeup, and Fashion Designing—with each beneficiary also receiving a complete training kit to enable them to start or expand their chosen enterprise after the programme.
Under the scheme, the Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational, and Entrepreneurship Education, Dr Abiola Arogundade, said trainees in Graphics and AI will receive laptops, while those undergoing makeup training will be provided with fully equipped makeup kits.
Participants in Fashion Designing will receive sewing machines and starter kits to support their transition from training to entrepreneurship and self-employment.
The programme will culminate in a graduation ceremony and grand finale scheduled for October 9, 2026.
During the grand finale, the Nigerian government will distribute 500 tablets to young Nigerians as part of its broader digital empowerment initiative.
Arogundade said the initiative underscores the Nigerian government’s commitment to equipping young Nigerians with practical skills, tools, and opportunities required to build sustainable livelihoods.
Through the NPRGS, the Nigerian government is also strengthening skills development and entrepreneurship as pathways to greater economic participation and improved livelihoods among Nigerian youths.
Packaged by Lanre Olabisi
