Locations200 of the 600 beneficiaries will be trained in Mohammet Lawan College of Agriculture, Maiduguri. Photo: UNDP Nigeria/ Eno Jonathan
Maiduguri, 28 March 2019 - UNDP and European Union have kicked off the first batch of EU fully-funded vocational training for 600 conflict-affected persons from Borno State enrolled in the Integrated Community Recovery and Resilience in Borno State (IC2RB) programme. Under the programme implemented by the UNDP, beneficiaries are being trained in 24 different skills such as aluminium fabrication, catering & decoration, hair dressing, tailoring, welding & fabrication, auto mechanic, auto mobile technology, mechatronics, cattle fattening, crop production, fish production, shoe making/leather works, etcetera.
The crisis in North-East Nigeria, now in its tenth year has spilled into the Lake Chad region, with 7.1 million people in Nigeria in need of humanitarian assistance. Prolonged development deficit in the region exposed millions to different kinds of vulnerabilities even before the crisis started. With 1.8 million people still internally displaced in the three most affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, finding sources of livelihood remains a huge challenge for hundreds of households as they continue to rely on humanitarian support for survival.
The vocational trainings are aimed at equiping those affected by the conflict with skills that will enable them to be self-reliant as they rebuild their lives. The trainees consist of 262 females and 338 males from across 27 Local Governments of the State. The training sessions will last between 3-12 months depending on the skills being imparted.
The EU funded 'Borno package' is designed to support people affected by the conflict, especially those the displaced, to enable them recover their livelihood and less dependent on humanitarian for survival. "Strengthening people’s skills and their livelihood is at the heart of the EU’s early recovery programmes in the North East and this is essential for inclusive growth not only in the North East but in all Nigeria” stated Cornelis Kurt, Head of Cooperation for delegation of the European Union to Nigeria
The Head of UNDP North-East field office, Ms. Mizuho Yokoi added that “UNDP was linking acquisition of new skills through vocational training with employment creation. Therefore, trainees who meet laid down criteria at the end of completion of their training will receive start-up cash grants for business purposes.”
Through this initiative, the EU is investing EUR15m which will facilitate the implementation of activities aimed at meeting urgent early recovery needs of populations affected by the conflict. The programme, which is integrated in approach, has been developed based on UNDP’s global experience with community stabilization in post-conflict settings. It addresses basic services, livelihoods, reconciliation and security as well as local governance to rebuild the resilience of conflict-affected people and communities that were devastated by the onslaught of Boko Haram in Borno State -thereby providing catalytic ingredients for communities to thrive again.
END/
For more information:
UNDP - Eno Jonathan (eno.jonathan@undp.org; Tel: +234 812 944 5688)
EU - Modestus Chukwulaka (Modestus.chukwulaka@eeas.europa.eu; +234 9 4617800/7, ext 204)
300 beneficiaries that matriculated in Ramat Polytechnic will be trained in Aluminium Fabrication, Catering and Decoration, Welding, Tailoring, etc. (Photo: UNDP Nigeria/ Eno Jonathan)
50 conflict-affected youth are undergoing training in Auto Mechanic, Auto Painting & Spraying, Auto Mobile Technology, etc and will be presented Starter Kits at graduation.
262 females make up the 600 beneficiaries of vocational skills training. The conflict has brought about female-headed households. This training is to ensure they are less vulnerable. (Photo: UNDP Nigeria/ Eno Jonathan)
