In line with its pledge to support the job creation agenda of the Nigerian government, One of Nigeria’s most innovative financial institutions, Wema Bank, has concluded arrangements with the federal government to commence an initiative that will impact two million youths and a million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across the country.
The project was revealed a few days ago during a visit to Aso Villa by the Managing Director of Wema Bank, Moruf Oseni, and other delegates. Vice President Kashim Shettima who received the delegates lauded the commitment and partnership of the bank.
The bank delegates were at the Villa to brief the vice president on the progress made in the implementation of the FGN-ALAT Digital Skill-Novation Programme – an initiative of a partnership between the Federal Government and Wema Bank to train two million youths and empower one million Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across Nigeria.
The Vice president while speaking on the support and commitment of the bank in the execution of the initiative said “I will call on you to be above board. You are a good organisation. I want to thank you most sincerely for your initiative and commitment, be rest assured that we will fulfil our part of the bargain.”
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Oseni, while speaking to State House correspondents later in an interview, said they were at the Presidential Villa to brief the Vice President on “how far we have gone on the FGN/ALAT project. The Vice President was very happy, and shortly you will hear from his office about how we want to progress with this programme, part of this is to help create innovation hubs across the country for us”
“Mr President came out with a very bold and audacious plan on how to revive the Nigerian economy. The banks are key players and we will do our best to actualize this. If Nigeria does well, the financial institutions will do well. Mr. President is 100% on track and we are totally in support of his administration, ”he said.
Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Job Creation and MSMEs, emphasized the significance of collaboration, noting that “there is power in partnership. The private sector and the public sector coming together can always do more for the people. Mr. President’s ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda cannot be achieved by the government or private sector alone as it requires all hands on deck.
“So, we dug deep into the private sector to see how they can play their role. In the first instance, they agree to partner with us on skills acquisition and in other aspects of the scheme that we plan to implement” he stated.
The FGN/ALAT Digital Skill-Novation Programme will be formally launched by the Vice President on 29 September at the State House Banquet Hall, Abuja.
