5 Million Nigerian Artistian Will Be Empowered By ITF

“Skill-up Artisans (SUPA)” is a revolutionary project launched by the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) with the goal of upskilling, licensing, and empowering 5 million Nigerian craftsmen annually.

Dr. Afiz Oluwatoyin Ogun, the Fund's Director-General, revealed this information at the organization's 2023 Annual Merit Award in Jos, Plateau State. Dr. Ogun stated that the program will be implemented by gathering information on Nigerian artisans who may be eligible for certification, licensing, and training when needed in order to improve their employment prospects both domestically and abroad.

He emphasized that ITF has started gathering data on Nigerian artisans, has registered thousands of artisans thus far, and has set up a call center that is staffed around-the-clock to respond to inquiries from the public and provide them with the information they need about SUPA.

Ogun went on to say that SUPA is a reflection of the Nigerian government's dedication to advancing economic growth and raising the nation's residents' standard of living.

“It is intended to drive national development, ensure the availability of skilled artisanal workers for domestic industries, and create a sustainable pipeline for labour exports. It will equally boost the pool of local artisans with proficiency in diverse skills, among other benefits,” he mentioned.

The Director-General invited state governments, the organized private sector, non-governmental organizations, faith-based organizations, and Nigerians in general to work with the ITF to revitalise the Nigerian economy, particularly in the SUPA sector.

Dogun discussed the implementation of skills intervention programs, pointing out that in partnership with the Nigerian Employers' Consultative Association (NECA), ITF has trained over 42,000 Nigerians to date and provided them with start-up packs under the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP), Women Skills Empowerment Programme (WOSEP), Construction Skills Empowerment Program (CONSEP), N-BUILD, Project T-Max, Modular Skills Development, and Technical Skills Development Program (TSDP).

He continued by saying that the Fund had carried out 565 planned and ad hoc training programs for 11,992 organizations from 908 organizations in the area of direct training and MSMEs' capacity building.

“In addition, we carried out performance and productivity improvement surveys for 48 companies and developed 35 training programs, of which 28 were implemented. Similarly, in appreciation of the importance of MSMEs to Nigeria's economic growth, the Fund conducted monitoring and evaluation of MSMEs clinics for 241 participants and provided business support services and business needs assessments for 159 and 254 MSME operators, respectively.”

Ogun further mentioned that the fund provided SIWES students and supervisors allowances of One Billion, One Hundred and Forty-Two Million, Two Hundred and Twenty-Three Thousand, and Five Hundred Naira in the year under review.

He said that the breakdown of the number showed that 48,869 university students received N733,035,000, 23,297 polytechnic students received N232,970,00, and 7,238 students at colleges of education received N72,380,000.