The Federal Government will employ an additional 350,000
graduates in 2017.
The graduates will be employed under the N-Power
Volunteer Corps, a component of the government’s Social Investment Programmes.
The Senior Special Assistant to the Acting President on
Media Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
Akande said President Muhammadu Buhari had requested an
appropriation of N157.75bn in the 2017 budget estimates for the N-Power scheme.
“350,000 unemployed graduates more would be hired and
trained, alongside 50,000 non-graduates youths to be engaged as artisans and in
other creative ventures,” Akande said.
He explained further that under the N157.75bn also, a sum
of N4.5bn had been earmarked for science, technology, engineering and
mathematics programme to support young Nigerians in building skills in those
disciplines.
Akande noted that the SIPs’ budget proposals for 2017
would be discussed this week at the National Assembly and urged Nigerians to
expect more initiatives especially in the area of implementation as virtually
all of the SIPs are now undergoing different stages of implementation.
“While we were able to engage 200,000 unemployed
graduates last year, we will do 350,000 more this year,” he said.
He added that some of the teething problems were giving
way to lessons that would enhance the implementation under the 2017 budget.
He also disclosed that about N75bn had been allocated for
the National Homegrown School Feeding Programme in the 2017 budget.
He added that N112.2bn had been allocated to the
Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme aimed at providing
interest-free loans to 1.2 million market men and women, artisans, youths and
farmers.
Under the GEEP, he explained that beneficiaries would
receive between N10,000 and N100,000 loans with a one-time five per cent
administrative fee.
He said over 20,000 Nigerians in 14 states had benefitted
from GEEP under the 2016 budget.
He said the Conditional Cash Transfer which had started
in nine states would be further expanded under the 2017 budget to reach more
states.
Akande said, “The plan in 2016 budget targeted one
million poorest and vulnerable Nigerians. And in the 2017 budget, an additional
N54.98bn has been allocated for the continuation of the N5, 000 monthly social
safety net payments to the poorest Nigerians.
“2017 implementation of the SIPs is going to be far more
impactful than what we were able to do under the 2016 budget. So, Nigerians
should expect more this year. The resolve of the Buhari presidency is that more
lives must be touched positively under these programmes which Nigerians have
come to appreciate.”
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