225,000 Artisans Benefit from ITF's Nationwide Skill Enhancement Programme

In a move to enhance the skills of Nigerian artisans, the Industrial Training Fund has embarked on a nationwide screening exercise for 225,000 practising artisans. The initiative, known as the Skill Up Artisans programme, is a Federal Government project aimed at equipping Nigerian tradesmen with globally competitive skills and internationally recognised certification. According to the Director of the ITF's Technical and Vocational Skills Training Department, Mrs Nancy Ekong, the programme is designed to improve the livelihoods of skilled workers in line with President Bola Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda. Mrs Ekong explained that the programme is strictly for artisans who are already practising a trade, with the goal of improving their technical competence, attitude to work, and professionalism. The three-and-a-half-month training will be delivered free of charge, with the ITF paying master trainers and providing transportation stipends to beneficiaries. The programme will culminate in internationally recognised certification, boosting participants' employability both in Nigeria and abroad. Successful artisans will be channelled through three pathways, including business incubation, linkage with employers of labour, and opportunities to work outside Nigeria. Mrs Ekong expressed confidence that the programme would strengthen Nigeria's skilled workforce and create sustainable livelihoods, improving the quality of the country's skilled workforce, enhancing productivity, and creating sustainable livelihoods for thousands of artisans.