Are You A Graduate? And Unemployed? SURE-P Set To Employ 50,000 Across The Nation

                                                  

Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) one- day sensitization workshop for firms in Anambra state yesterday ended with assurance to unemployed graduates that over 50, 000 graduates will be employed in its Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS) across the country.

Project Director, Mr. Peter Papka who stated this at the Conv-aj hotel, Nnewi , informed that the programme was designed at a macro level to create more awareness and generate more discourse among the citizenry on the spate of graduate unemployment in the country and what the government is doing to reduce it through the GIS.

The programme was in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Finance.

Mr. Papka who was represented by the Assistant Director of GIS SURE-P, Mr Aremu Najeem told the participants that under the scheme, graduates would be placed in firms, organizations and selected government agencies on a one- year internship. 

 He said that the interns were expected to acquire professional skills, training and work experience to improve their job-placement opportunities.  The Federal Government, he said, would be responsible for paying a monthly stipend to the interns while participating institutions would be expected to provide adequate opportunities for training and monitoring.

He said: “Among the objectives of the scheme is the resolve to enhance the employability of at least 50,000 unemployed graduates in the 36 states of the federation and in the Federal Capital Territory by improving their skills based on internship programmes in registered organizations as well as to provide a safety net and income supplement for unemployed graduates,” the Project Director explained.

He said the sensitization workshop was part of the strategies employed by the project to reach out to firms and mobilize them to partner with government in this regard, adding that the positive responses the project had received since it started the exercise indicated that the workshops were a complete success.

He said about 6,800 firms had so far been reached in 34 States already covered by the project which appearance in Nnewi yesterday was its second time in the State.

Project Technical Adviser for Community Service, Women and Youths Employment, Mr Colet Ifeanyi Odenigbo, the target was initially 50,000 interns but was later reduced to 25,000 to increase the stipend from N18,000 to N25,000 and later N30,000 effective from January this year after due consultations with the Federal Ministry of Finance.  Mr Odenigbo said that over 126,000 interns were already registered nation-wide “showing the level of unemployment in our country.” He said the agency did not owe any stipend to the interns.