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Buhari directs CBN to provide funds for textile sector

Buhari directs CBN to provide funds for textile sector

Funds
By Tosin Kolade
Abuja, Oct. 29, 2019 (NAN) President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday mandated the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to make special funds available for the production of textiles and garments locally.

Buhari made the call after declaring open the 31st National Education Conference of the National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) in Abuja.

The President, represented by Prof. Segun Ajiboye, Registrar, Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria, also called on the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) to facilitate training of Textile Workers to sustain current efforts at improving local garments production in the country.

He noted that the administration was committed towards improving the industries in the country with the signing of the executive order 003.

According to him, the order mandates all “’procuring authorities to give preference to Nigerian companies and firms in the award of contracts, in line with the Public Procurement Act 2007.”

The President noted that the CBN had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Nigerian military and paramilitary outfits, as part of efforts to revive the Cotton, Textiles and Garment (CTG) sector in Nigeria.

“In recent time, the CBN has taken a number of commendable efforts to encourage patronage of local fabrics towards driving economic policy.

“After series of engagements, the CBN initiated the signing of an unprecedented MoU between the Service Chiefs, chief Executives of uniform services and textile garment manufacturers on enforcement of Executive Order 003 in support of local urgent procurement.

“I am glad to report to you that this is already yielding positive fruits.

“The existing 40,000 garment and textile workers must be trained and retrained , I will use this opportunity to call on the CBN to collaborate with your union and the ITF to come in and encourage the union to provide funds towards this end.

Buhari thanked the union for maintaining industrial peace and harmony, saying this was achieved through social dialogue and collective bargaining.

Mr Issa Aremu, General Secretary, NUTGTWN, commended the Federal Government for the closure of Nigeria’s land borders to end smuggling of goods into the country.

Aremu said the move was impressive, as it was aiding local production and consumption of goods.

According to him, garment industries have been boosted in the country, saying there is the need to sustain current efforts and support the Nigeria Customs Service to fight smuggling.

“We will like to commend the efforts of the Federal Government in the closure of its land borders, this has helped in total overhaul of textile and garment industries in the country.

“It is already on record that the textile industries are now making money, smugglers and importers have gone into hiding, border closure should not be permanent, but should be sustained for the mean time.”

Aremu said that in 31 years of the union’s existence, industrial peace and harmony had been sustained through the principles of collective bargaining.

He noted that the association had also signed 46 national agreements for development.

He said there was the need for the ITF to increase its intervention on worker’s training and skills development, saying this was necessary as the future of work was being threatened by technology.

The general secretary also advised the Federal Government to be wary of foreign investors, who use diverse schemes to swindle the country’s wealth, citing the over nine billion dollars PI and D gas contract scam.

NUTGTWN National President, Mr John Adaji, noted that the current administration had shown commitment to revamping the textile industry with the introduction of a comprehensive Cotton, Textile and Garment (CTG) Policy.

Adaji said that the policy, if implemented, would help to meet Federal Government’s target of creating 100 million jobs in ten years, adding that the union had the capacity to create no fewer than 2.5 million jobs.

The President commended the CBN’s development financing programme, which aided distribution of cotton seeds to farmers and the restructuring of Bank of Industry loans to surviving textile companies.

Mr Rueben Bamidele, from the UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), stated that the organisation was working to promote industrial development by strengthening institutions.

He pledged the commitment of the agency to strengthen partnership towards improving the union and supporting government’s goal of lifting its populace out of poverty.

The theme of the conference is, “Labour and Industry in the Next Level”. (NAN)

TAK/NNO/DOR
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Edited by Nick Nicholas/Nyisom Fiyigon Dore

General news

Jos collapsed building: We’ve skills gap of 17.9% in Construction – D-G ITF

Jos collapsed building: We’ve skills gap of 17.9% in Construction – D-G ITF
Photo:

The management of ITF and the entourage of the GOC of 3rd Armoured Division, Jos, Maj.-Gen. Nuhu Agbanzo, during their courtesy visit to ITF Headquarters in Jos

By Martha Agas
Training
Jos, July 17, 2019(NAN) Mr Joseph Ari, the Director-General, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), says Nigeria has a skills gap of 17.9 per cent in construction leading to many defects in buildings.
Ari was reacting to the Jos collapsed building on Monday evening at Dilimi Area of Jos North Local Government Area in Plateau, that claimed 14 lives with four injured.
The director-general disclosed this on Wednesday in Jos during a courtesy visit by Maj.-Gen. Nuhu Agbanzo, the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 3rd Armoured Division, Jos, to the ITF Headquarters.
He said ITF in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) had conducted a survey on skill gaps in Nigeria, noting that jobs are available without requisite skills.
“We have available jobs in Nigeria but no requisite skills for it. The construction jobs are being taken over by expatriates who exceed their one per cent quota as stipulated by the law.
“We should declare a state of emergency in skills acquisition in the country and call for more collaborations from organisations and state governments in training Nigerians on vocational and technical skills,” Ari said.
The director-general congratulated the GOC for the peaceful conduct of elections in the state and promised to support him in motivating his personnel through training and empowering their family members on skills.
“We will bring one of our ‘training on wheels’ van to the barracks to train housewives of army personnel on prolonged operations on skills and empower them with starter packs.
“We trained 200 Air force officers on mechatronics and autotronics through our Model Skills Training Centre in Abuja,” he said.
Earlier in his remarks, Agbanzo said the visit was to seek support in developing its human capital especially for families of personnel on prolonged operations.
“We want a unique synergy with ITF to assure our personnel of their welfare and their families in case of eventualities such as injuries and to empower both serving and out of service personnel with life skills to become self sufficient,” he said. (NAN)
MAA/MST
Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola

General news

(Video) NAN News Highlights for Mon., July 23, 2018

1. The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC),
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, says ministers, who failed to inaugurate
members of boards of parastatals under their supervision, risk expulsion from the party.

Oshiomhole condemned the actions of some ministers who had refused to
inaugurate board members appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari and
now appropriate the powers of the board by awarding contracts without
recourse to due process.
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2. A Civil Society Organisation, Elections monitor 2018, has commended
the Independent National Electoral Commission for ensuring a level
–playing field for all political parties during the just concluded
Ekiti State Governorship election.
The coordinator of the CSO, Mr Abiodun Ajijola during the public
presentation of the election observation report said there was
improvement in INEC’s conduct of Election Day activities with no
evidence of partisanship
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3. Dr Adebimpe Adebiyi, the Director, Family Health Department of the
Federal Ministry of Health has advised medical practitioners and other
stakeholders in the health sector, to scale up the use of
chlorhexidine vaccine to reduce newborn deaths due to umbilical cord
infections.
Adebiyi emphasised the need for stakeholders’ intervention in making
the drug available in both public and private health facilities across
the country.
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4. The Nigerian Hajj Medical Team on Monday in Madinah, Saudi Arabia,
cautioned pilgrims against environmental hazards arising from harsh
weather conditions during their pilgrimage in the holy cities of
Makkah and Madinah.

Head of the Medical Team, National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, Dr
Muhammad Abdulkadir said because of the high temperatures and harsh
weather in Madinah, pilgrims were at the risk of getting dehydrated
and therefore needed to drink plenty of water frequently.
Abdulkadir advised the pilgrims to maintain personal hygiene and
observe environmental sanitation as well as eat good food throughout
the duration of the Hajj.
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5. The Industrial Training Fund in collaboration with the Nigerian air
Force has trained two hundred personnel in Electrical Works, Auto Cad,
Welding and Fabrication, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, Masonry,
Plumbing and Pipe Fitting.
The Director General of ITF, Mr. Joseph Ari, said the event marked a
water shed in the effort to skill and re-skill members of the Armed
Forces for efficient management of Security stations country wise.
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6.  The General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation, Mohammed
Sanusi, says the Amaju Pinnick-led Executive Committee of is back to
the federation’s secretariat to direct affairs in earnest.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino threatened to sanction NFF over the
long running battle for leadership of the federation between the
Pinnick-led executive committee and the Chris Giwa-led faction.
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General news

ITF trained 500 artisans in Niger in 2016 – Area Manager

NAN-H-87
Training
Minna, March 23, 2017 (NAN) The Industrial Training Fund (ITF), said on Thursday that it trained 500 people in Niger on different vocational skills, under the National Industrial Skills Development programme, in 2016.
‎
Its Area Manager in the state, Mrs. Ifeoma Ihezue‎, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Minna.

Ihezue said that the beneficiaries trained on aluminum production, bead making, carpentry and sewing.

“The ITF has continued to monitor beneficiaries to keep them on track. We are also collaborating with the Bank of Industry to enable them secure loans to set up their own businesses,” she said.‎

She called on the state government to empower the beneficiaries so that they would create jobs and become assets to a flourishing society.

“We must work together to keep our youths off the streets; while ITF is training them, the state should help those trained to use such skills,” she said. (NAN)
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AMEN/AOS/ETS
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Edited by Bayo Sekoni and Ephraims Sheyin

General news

Abductions: ITF organizes security awareness workshop for staff

NAN-H-105
Security
By Martha Agas
Jos, Feb. 17, 2017(NAN) Worried by the rising spate of abductions, the industrial Trust Fund(ITF) has organised a security awareness workshop for its staff to prepare them to secure themselves.

A statement signed by Mrs. Suleyol Chagu, ITF spokesperson, quoted its Director-General, Mr Joe Ari, as saying that the workshop was informed by previous encounters, where officers were abducted on duty.

“The services of the Fund is public-oriented with its officers always on the field and on transit, thus making them more vulnerable and potential victims of abduction.

“Abductions can be cruel and traumatic. The victims are usually tortured. We don’t want a repeat of what some workers have suffered,” the statement, made available to NAN on Friday, further quoted Ari as saying.

The statement restated ITF’s commitment to the development of skills toward diversifying the economy and creating jobs that would reverse the trend of unemployment, a factor believed to be prompting youths to see abduction as a form of business.

“ The workshop will equip the staff with a ‘third eye’ for vigilance,” it said.

Mr. Ibrahim Dan-Musa, the State Director, Department of State Security (DSS) in Plateau, who witnessed the training, commended the management of the Fund for the initiative “especially in view of the upsurge in cases of kidnapping.  (NAN)
MAA/ETS

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Edited by Ephraims Sheyin

General news

ITF commences skills development programme in 18 states, March 1- DG

 

NAN-H-105

Skills

By Martha Agas

Jos, Feb. 14, 2017 (NAN) The Industrial Trust Fund (ITF) says it will commence the next phase of National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP) in 18 states, on March 1.

Its Director-General, Joseph Ari, said in a statement in Jos on Tuesday, that the programme was part of efforts to provide employment and check indolence among the for youths.

The statement, signed by Mrs. Suleyol Chagu, Head, Public Affairs Unit of the ITF, said that the the programme would provide requisite employable skills to 500 Nigerians from each of the 18 States.

He listed the states to include Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Benue, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo and Jigawa.

The rest are Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Rives, Taraba and Yobe.

Ari said that beneficiaries would undergo training in 30 trades and crafts, including tailoring and fashion design, paint and beads making, plumbing and pipe fitting, farming, confectionery, welding and fabrication.

Other areas are ICT, electrical installation, carpentry and wood work, cosmetology, GSM repairs as well as the making of Plaster of Paris (POP).

“This training is a tripartite arrangement involving ITF, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria and Bank of Industry.

“Trainees will be taken through hands-on vocational and entrepreneurial skills as well as modalities for business financing,” Ari was quoted as saying.

He appealed to government officials in benefiting states and other stakeholders, to support the initiative through the provision of start-up grants and facilities to empower the trainees to set up their businesses as entrepreneurs and employers of labour.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme commenced in 2012, after being conceived as part of the scheme of the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan.

Since its commencement, the programme, which is supervised by the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment, has trained 84,100 Nigerians in diverse trades and crafts.

In 2016 alone, the NISDP trained 10,100 Nigerians in diverse skills. Among the trainees were 1,100 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Borno. (NAN)
MAA/HAS/ETS
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Edited By Hajia Sani and Ephraims Sheyin