Edo State Skills Development Agency (EdoJobs) in collaboration with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH under its Skills Development for Youth Employment in Nigeria (SKYE) programme, has concluded plans to host over 20 private sector companies, investors, donor organisations and financial institutions to a working visit of various skills development and job creation initiatives in Edo State.
The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Obaseki on Skills Development and Jobs Creation, and Head of EdoJobs, Mrs Ukinebo Dare, said the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led government is expanding centres for investors to key into the Federal Government’s development agenda.
“We are really excited about our growing collaboration with GIZ through its Skills Development for Youth Employment (SKYE) programme. They are currently supporting our job creation initiatives in the state,” Mrs Ukinebo said.
The 2-day event will give visiting companies and stakeholders the opportunity to tour the Edo Innovation Hub, Edo Production Centre on Sapele Road, Edo Food and Agriculture Cluster and the Edo Creative Hub. These Centres show how far the state government has gone in building local capacities in innovation and technology for manufacturers, the creative industry, and small-scale businesses.
The highpoint of the event will be the launch of the Edo Production Centre. The Centre is a multipurpose facility created with a conducive environment to boost productivity for manufacturers and small-scale businesses.
Mrs Dare said the Edo Production Centre and other centres in the state hold a lot of investment opportunities for companies interested in investing in the state. The state government recently signed the bill setting up EdoJobs into law to ensure the sustainability of these initiatives, geared towards creating wealth and boosting the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the state.
The relationship between EdoJobs and GIZ’s SKYE programme is in their thematic areas which cut across youth skills development, job creation, industrial manufacturing, and agriculture, all of which are tied to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8 – promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.
