By Miriam Humbe
National Youth Service Corps and Small & Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), have reached an agreement on boosting capacity of Corps Members for job creation and youth empowerment.
Caroline Embu, NYSC’s Acting Director, Information and Public Relations disclosed this in a statement signed on Thursday.
The two agencies signed a Memorandum of Understanding to that effect at SMEDAN Headquarters in Abuja on Thursday.
The Director General of NYSC, Brigadier General Yushau Dogara Ahmed said that partnership with SMEDAN would avail Corps Members more access to funds to finance their business ideas.
He said that NYSC mobilized over 400,000 Corps Members annually and equipped them with bankable business ideas and vocational skills.
The NYSC DG said: “This means, providing them with start-up capital is a sure way of improving Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product”.
The Director General/Chief Executive Officer of SMEDAN, Mr Charles Odii lauded Brigadier General Ahmed for his passion towards Corps Members’ empowerment.
He said the Agency would leave no stone unturned in pursuing Federal Government’s agenda on job creation.
Odii said that the MoU would empower Corps Members to fund their business ideas as SMEDAN aimed to create 50,000 entrepreneurs in a year.
“Corps Members are graduates and if they are well trained, they will train and also empower other youths”, he said.
