News: Shell Live Wire Nigeria - Empowering Youths to Grow

Is there a link between unemployment and poverty? The World Bank believes it is so. In its Economic Index for 2014, it identified unemployment as one of the major causes of poverty. Joblessness, the bank said, is a scourge ravaging nations, noting that many governments have fought it to no avail. It said many countries have not been able to tackle unemployment because of their lean purses.

To create jobs, governmental and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) have gone into training people.

Last week, Shell held a graduation and awards ceremony for 20 youths who benefited from its social empowerment scheme at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos. The Shell Live Wire Nigeria has helped in discovering and nurturing youths with the potential to become employers.

The initiative is part of Shell’s policy of ploughing back into its host countries. Graduates apply online for the training. Those selected get N750, 000 as start-up of candidates for the training, and provision of start-up after training.

The Managing Director of Shell Nigeria ding that the 20 beneficiaries are going to provide thousands of jobs.

Attah said the scheme would build capabilities of people, and further enable them to reduce poverty by creating jobs. Those expected to benefit from the scheme are skilled, semi- skilled and unskilled workers such as computer engineers, marketers of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) products, cameramen, photographers, farmers, drivers among others.

According to Attah, jobs would be created when people acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and resources.

He explained that 70 per cent of the world’s population is youths below 25 years, arguing that the only way they can bring about the desired change in the society is to empower them. He said the development informed Shells’ decision to train 20 new people, give them N750, 000 each and one-year mentorship package. He said Shell’s enterprise development programme is tailored towards jobs’ creation, in view of the fact that Nigeria has one of the highest numbers of unemployed in Africa.

“Through enterprise development programme, we believe we can identify and develop youths who have potentials to become job creators in their chosen trades, and not job seekers. Through this, we are building capacity and raising a generation of entrepreneurs with wherewithal to take people out of labour market and grow the Nigerian economy.” Attah said.

Also, the Youth Development Adviser, Shell, Monica Umah, said enterprise development programme is one way of making people build their skills and become employers of labour, adding that the programme is educating people on how to start and grow their businesses.
Umah said: “We had a five-day programme where people were put in a class, taught how to produce their feasibility studies, start businesses, expand them, prepare books accounts, and benefit from their mentors. During the programme, we made people to understand that they can start business from homes, and shops. The 20 new beneficiaries have undergone the training. Though they are based in Lagos, they are of different origins.”

On method of recruitment, she said people apply online, shortlisted, interviewed, and selected for the training, stressing that different stages were introduced in order to pick to get the best people for the project.

She said 10 out of the 20 trainees are going into Information Technology and Communication (ICT) business, and require a chair, table, desktop computers, and small space to operate and interface with their customers. She added that Shell is taking them to its incubation centre in Marina, Lagos, for one year monitoring programme. The remaining 10 people, Umar said, are going into farming, food processing, among other areas, and do not need incubation centre.

She said: “What the incubation centre does is it helps people know how to reduce overheads that achieve usually trouble new businesses. The beneficiaries would be handed over to mentors that would guide them to success. The mentors would collect their details, and establish a working relationship with them. The mentors and the beneficiaries of the scheme would be meeting from to time to discuss the way forward. The reason for mention is to ensure that the beneficiaries record growth. What Shell is looking for is: What is the turnover of the beneficiaries of the scheme? Is it the turnover growing or reducing? How many people have the beneficiaries employed? She asked.

Umar said Shell has supported 3, 017 out of the 5, 000 Niger Delta Youths trained few years ago, stressing many of them have helped in creating jobs.

We have been able to establish over 3, 000 small businesses around the region. Those businesses are doing well. Many of the business owners are now Shell’s suppliers. Shell has supported the over 3, 000 people with cash to grow their businesses. The company started with N100, 000, increased it to N300, 000 and now N750, 000 to enable people create jobs. The 12 new beneficiaries are to do the same thing. They have mapped out strategies to start, and grow their businesses in order to provide jobs for people.” She said.

One of the beneficiaries, Jenifer Nwamaka, said she is going into farming to boost food production, create jobs and add value to the economy.

Nwamaka, a graduate from Covenant University, Otta, Ogun State said she presently runs a farm, but would go into food processing in the future.

She said her foray into agriculture was not a mistake because she has conducted extensive research on it in order to achieve success. Jenifer said: “I have started planting vegetables. I’m going into cassava planting. Despite the fact that my background is in Chemical Engineering, I prefer farming to oil and gas which many people are running to. The reason is because agriculture is the future of Nigeria. People must eat. I have conducted research on agriculture and I’m still doing it. I realise that there is money in agriculture. I believe that I’m going to achieve success in this endeavour. I will farm to create jobs( direct and indirect), which would help in taking my mates who are looking for jobs, off the streets. I have been pursuing this dream since 2005, and I’m keeping it alive by keying into opportunities that would galvanise my potentials. One of them is the Shell’s training programme which I got to know through a friend. Unfortunately, my friend who was unable was not shortlisted.

Another beneficiary, Kunle Yusuf said he is going into food processing, having realised the opportunities in it.

Hear him: “I am investing in food processing because I know that food is indispensable to man. People need food for survival. The jobs’ prospects in food processing is huge, and I will try and provide jobs through this.”

Source: The Nation