The Lagos State Government has announced that it has placed 4,000 unemployed graduates on N40,000 monthly salary for a period of 6 months.
The initiative which is implemented through the Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment’s Graduate Internship Placement Programme (GIPP) is intended to address the challenge of unemployment among unemployed graduates in Lagos State.
This disclosure was made by the Lagos State Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, Mrs Yetunde Arobieke, during the 2021 Ministerial Press Briefing in commemoration of the Second Year in the Office of Governor Bababjide Sanwo-Olu.
Arobieke said the programme, which was planned to last for six months, was meant to expose interns to a particular job, profession or industry and enhance networking.
She pointed out that through this initiative, interns will be given the opportunity to excel and possibly learn a job with the organisation; as they are exposed to professional skills and interpersonal relationships in a structured setting.
What the Lagos State Commissioner of Wealth Creation and Employment is saying
Arobieke said the programme would expose interns to the possible niche of entrepreneurial opportunities and provide an opportunity for the graduates to have employability skills and exposure to today’s world of work.
She said, “The GIPP is meant to assist Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and other companies to choose from the state’s database of groomed talent/interns, to enhance productivity and boost their businesses, thereby, promoting economic growth at no cost through the intervention of the state government.
A total of 51,514 graduates applied for the internship online, over 1,932 companies indicated interest to onboard the interns after their training and 4,736 applicants attempted the Online Assessment Test.
About 1,000 candidates who scored a minimum of 60 per cent were invited for the first tranche of the employability skills training, while 4,000 interns are targeted to be placed on a monthly stipend of N40,000 for six months.
You will agree with me that the state government under Sanwo-Olu is leaving no stone unturned in mitigating the unemployment scourge,” Arobieke said.
She said the ministry’s Employability Department, during the period under review, organised youth-focused programmes which included the “Mindset Re-Orientation Programme,” a program aimed at reorientating the mindset of the unemployed youths in facing the realities of the present day labour market.
Going further, she said, “Hence, the need for reorientation of the mindset of the job seekers to imbibe learning vocational and technical skills to be self-employed.”
The 2020 edition of this programme had 2,163 unemployed youths that participated in the webinar with seasoned practitioners in various fields or areas of specialisations as facilitators.
This is good news.