Kunle Adelabu
-Take care of your today with skills – Ikorodu LG boss
In commemoration of the International Youth Skill Day, the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Ikorodu Local Government chapter, has empowered 50 youths with skills in order to make them productively engaged and earn a living.
At the event that took place at the Ikorodu Local Government Secretariat on Monday, youths were trained on how to make gele, liquid soap, izal, dettol and branding of their products.
This year’s celebration is themed, “Youthful Sustainability”
The Coordinator, NYCN Ikorodu LG chapter, Comrade Basit Ogunsanmi, said that the Ikorodu chapter of the youth group is engaging the youths in skill to make them productive.
“Today is the World Skill Day, and we want to appreciate our youths in Ikorodu. Presently, some of our youths are not doing anything and some of them are also saying that there is nothing that they can do with the economic situation”, he said.
“On our part, we are celebrating the World Youth Skill Day with something that the youths can grab and that will be useful for them in the future”.
Basit assured youths in Ikorodu, that his administration has many more impacting programmes for them that would change the narratives.
“This is my first project as the NYCN Chairman in Ikorodu, and it called a mini project because we have calendar for our programmes. We want to give back to Ikorodu youths. They will surely appreciate us because we have a lot of things for them”, he said.
“I want the beneficiaries to look build on the knowledge that they have acquired today, continue to engage and practice them so that it can be useful to them in future, because the youths of today are the leaders of tomorrow”.
He appreciated the Chairman, Ikorodu Local Government, Hon. Wasiu Adeshina, for his support and fatherly roles.
Meanwhile, in his remarks Hon. Adeshina, charged the youths on the need to acquire necessary education and skills to put them in good standing in the future.
He was represented by the Vice Chairman, Ikorodu Local Government, Princess Folashade Olabanji – Oba.
“I want to encourage you that whatever it is that you are doing, you should do it well. The youths are not just leaders of tomorrow, but also the leaders of today. When you take care of today, tomorrow will definitely take care of itself”, he said.
“For us in Ikorodu, State and Nigeria, you are our greatest asset. We trust you and we are banking on you, please, be all that you can be, be the very best representing us.
“That you are here means that you meant well; that you are here means you want to be better and the best thing you can do for yourself is to continuously improve on yourself.
“The you of today is better than the you of yesterday, the you of tomorrow, I pray will definitely be greater, better than the you of today, So, on behalf of my Executive Chairman, Hon. Wasiu Ayodeji Adeshina, I wish you well. We love you and we are counting on you. God bless you”.
The Vice Chairman, NYCN Lagos East Senatorial District, Comrade Abubakri Olatunji Asoro, who said that the programme, which was being used to commemorate the international youth skill day, was going on simultaneously across the 57 branches of the NYCN in the state, emphasized the importance of skill acquisition to the country.
“Actually, what you are witnessing today in Ikorodu Local Government, is happening across the fifty – seven councils across Lagos State, with about fifty voluntary organizations. We are doing this programme to commemorate the World Skill Day and to us as young people, this day is very important to us, especially in a country where the unemployment is very high.
“This is also very important for Ikorodu, because of the social vices that have been raging of recent. We believe that a busy hand will have no business with any vice. So, this skill acquisition program will go a long way in empowering the participants and also helps them to earn some income for themselves”, he said.
He commended the leadership at the local chapter of NYCN for the initiative, while also urging them to sustain it.
Comrade Olalelan Biliamin Oba, the immediate past State NYCN Chairman, urged youths to use the knowledge that they are acquiring today to prepare themselves for the challenges of tomorrow.
“The message to them is very simple, gold goes through serious fire before it becomes a gold, so the training that they are actually going through here courtesy of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, Ikorodu chapter, they should put their mind into it. They never can tell when this training will come handy for them.
Oba also charged the NYCN leadership on the need to follow up on the training that they are impacting on the youths.
The former State NYCN Chairman charged that there is need to take advantage of the existing vocational centres, technical schools and other programmes in Ministry of Agriculture, Tourism and others.
Sholaja Sofiyat, a beneficiary who was trained on soap making, dettol and izal, was appreciative of the organizers and said that she felt good about the knowledge acquired.
“I feel good about it. At least, it has improved my knowledge on the skill”.
“I thank Hon. Wasiu Adeshina, for giving us the opportunity to participate in this empowerment programme”, she added.
Another participant, Hassan Basit Eniola, who is a resident of Olowonisahye area of Ikorodu, speaking, said that he intends to start a business using the skills that he has acquired if he could get capital.
He charged the NYCN leadership to ensure that more youths benefit from the training next time.
