Ugo Aliogo and Lawal Kehinde
Nagode Foundation in collaboration with Field of Skills and Dreams (FSD) has empowered youths in its entrepreneurship training programme in fashion designing, hotel and catering management, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and web designing, hair styling, cake baking, catering, and electrical installation.
Speaking at the induction ceremony in Lagos recently which featured the presentation of startup equipment to the inductees, the Managing Director Nagode Industries, Sandeep Kapoor, stated that the public and private sector have failed in tapping into the entrepreneurial spirit of Nigerians despite having a strong work force.
He also stated that Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) are strong creators of employment opportunities; therefore government should actively support the SME sector, while commending the FSD for organising the event.
He said as part of the foundation’s plan to support the training programme, they decided to support the FSD surmount the huge financial challenges they may be facing in training the entrepreneurs.
In her remarks, the Founder of FSD, Mrs. Omowale Ogunrinde, said the academy began in 2003 as an idea to support teenagers in her local church, adding that she felt a longing to take the initiative to the larger society by engaging the youths.
She also stated that the goal of the academy has always been empowering people with skills in order to setup their own businesses or work in industries, while stressing that since inception they have focused on professional skills acquisition.
“The training programme organised by the academy will help trainee get knowledge on how to start their businesses. The success stories are verifiable and they are amazing. We have been able to get partners in Ibadan, Kaduna, Calabar, Kuje and Enugu. Soon, we will doing a big job in Port Harcourt, later in the year, we will be going to Bayelsa, Minna and Ogun States.â€
She further noted that the academy has ensured that the training is professional enough to bring a change in the status of the trainees, adding that FSD in partnership with the foundation is aimed at removing people from the street, train them to either get jobs or setup businesses of their own.
Ogunrinde added: “People always come to us because of the quality of our work, we are not expensive; the skills we offer are measurable. We keep professional vocational training, leaving the street and coming to us, your life has to change. We monitor all our training, we make sure the students are able to do meaningful thing with their life after training. We give loan supports to our students, for example, N250, 000, N500, 000 have been given to some students.â€
