Empowerment: Abeokuta Chamber of Commerce visits Agege LG, seeks partnership

The Abeokuta Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture (ABEOCCIMA) on Thursday visited  Agege Local Government seeking partnership in youth empowerment and skill acquisitions among the grassroots women.

Iyalode Alaba Lawson, the Matron of ABEOCCIMA, said that the purpose of the visit to the council was to initiate collaboration that would bring more advancement to both the government and residents.

“We are here to partner in youth development programmes and women entrepreneurship so that both of us can operate on Private Public Partnership (PPP).

“We want to collaborate so that our youths can benefit more, because we knew that Agege local government has its own vocational trainings which have been in use since year 2000.

“This is where our youths can come together, even with the chamber’s programme of Dual Vocational Training that we are having with the German Government.’’

According to her, the ongoing team work within the local government has given the assurance that the PPP will go well.

Lawson said that the partnership would allow the youth to showcase their talents and encourage them to be focused in their various skills and talents.

“Every youth has talent. I have mine while you have yours; what we first do is to encourage them to be well focused because when they are well focused then the talent in them can come out.

“We want to bring it back the vocational trainings that will bring out the talent in youths and women to promote entrepreneurship.’’

The ABEOCCIMA matron commended the  council’s Chairman, Alhaji Ganiyu Egunjobi, on the ongoing N100, 000.00 grant empowerment programme for community women in Agege.

“Such empowerment will go a long in assisting the women; N100,000 grants not even loan, it is very commendable,” she said.

In his remarks, Alhaji Ganiyu Egunjobi, the Chairman of Agege Local Government, said that the collaboration was a welcome development which would go a long way in advancing the commercial activities within Agege community.

“I sincerely appreciate the visit; the development will enhance the internally generated revenue of the council at the long run, with the partnership with Abeokuta Chamber of Commerce.

“We are targeting the area of women entrepreneurship and youth empowerment and vocational skills to give them more confidence in their various chosen vocations,” he said.

According to him, the council has empowered no fewer than 1,000 women with N100, 000.00 grants each and will still do more of it with the incoming partnership with the ABEOCCIMA.

Egunjobi, however, advised the youth in the area to make use of the upcoming opportunity and showcase their skills and talents for selfreliance.

Mr. Adekunle Dipe, Council Manager, Agege Local Government, in his comments appreciated the visit saying that the collaboration would enhance more commercial development activities in Agege area.

“We have discussed where we can collaborate and see development in youth empowerment and women entrepreneurship.

“We want them to assist us in terms of acquisition of skills among the youths so that all the negative vices among the youth can be stopped,” he said

“Another area we are discussing is the area of agriculture, because we have the population and the land. We can partner them on where rice can be planted while our population will serve as market to the farm products.

According to him, the partnership will be in stages.

“We want to start with youth development/women entrepreneurship and other empowerment programmes first and  from there, venture into micro financing and others,’’ he said

The Agege council manager appealed to the youth to take the development serious so as to earn living from the exercise and shun   social vices. (NAN)

155887