Enhancing Post-service Lives of Nigerian Military Veterans through Sustainable Entrepreneurial Skills

Chiemelie Ezeobi 

In a determined push to enhance the post-service lives of Nigerian military veterans, the Defence Headquarters recently launched a three-day Skills Acquisition Training programme for Armed Forces veterans from the Southwest geopolitical zone. 

Held at the Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC), Oshodi, Lagos from 21 to 23 May 2025, the initiative was designed to equip ex-servicemen and women with practical skills and entrepreneurial knowledge for sustainable livelihoods.

A wide range of vocational skills were covered in the training, including poultry and fish farming, snail farming, animal husbandry, integrated farming, irrigation, and modern crop techniques. Other areas include financial literacy, record keeping, agricultural processing and packaging, marketing, and business opportunity identification.

Also, the participants were trained and certified by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), a credential that can support loan applications for business ventures.

Welcoming participants to the event, Major General D.I. Salihu, represented by Brigadier General Baushe, Deputy Director (Army), Veteran Affairs, described the training as a continuation of a people-first approach championed by the Chief of Defence Staff.

“It is my honour and privilege to welcome you all to the Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC) Oshodi, Lagos State, venue for the Defence Headquarters Veteran Affairs Division Skills Acquisition Training for Armed Forces Veterans of the Southwest Geopolitical zone,” he said.

“The training, which is conducted on geopolitical zone basis, has continued to leverage on the achievements and successes of the previous trainings as well as inputs of the veterans in the bid to enhance their general well-being in every ramification. 

“Thus, in tandem with part of the Chief of Defence Staff leadership concept which is ‘People Centric’, I therefore consider this training a very unique opportunity for all the participants.”

General Salihu urged participants to seize the moment, adding: “It is also my humble plea to our esteemed veterans to utilize the opportunity provided by this training to make best of the business ideas to their utmost advantage. Therefore, I urge you all to be attentive and make meaningful contributions during the lectures and the interactive sessions.”

He extended his appreciation to military authorities and organisers for their support: “I wish to formally thank the Chief of Defence Staff for his consistent and unflinching support to Veteran Affairs Division. I also wish to thank the Veteran Affairs Division Organising Committee for their effort towards making the planning process and conduct of the training a success.”

Representing the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, the Director of Coordination, NAFRC, Commodore IP Udoudoh, stated: “I am delighted to address you today on the auspicious occasion of the Skills Acquisition Training for Veterans (SAT-V) in the Southwest Geo-political zone.”

Highlighting the theme “Empowering Veterans Through Skills Acquisition for Capacity Building and Sustainability,” he said: “It is believed that by investing in these programs, we are equally investing in the future of our nation because the knowledge, discipline, and leadership abilities of our veterans are assets that can benefit any industry.

“As a farmer, I can better understand the takeaways from this training and their benefits to the participant. I am, therefore, confident that these skills acquisition training programs will be a transformative force in the lives of our dear veterans and in the overall strength of our workforce.

“The essence of this training is to educate participants in various agricultural lines… to create a platform for skills acquisition that could enable them to carve niches in the agricultural value chain.

“With the quality of facilitators anchoring this programme, I am optimistic that at the end of the training you will be adequately enlightened and prepared to key into the poverty alleviation programmes of the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) of His Excellency, The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR).

“I congratulate you all for being nominated for this training programme and I also urge you to make optimum use of the opportunities this training provides to interact among yourselves and other sundry organisations and individuals,” Commodore Udoudoh concluded.