Unemployed graduates start entrepreneurship training at Enugu

Interns participating in the Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS) of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) have begun their training with a three-day orientation at Enugu.

The Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF) says the initiative was aimed at reducing the alarmingly high rate of graduate unemployment in Nigeria.

Mr. Ademola Michael, a Senior Consultant at Fittam Consults, Abuja, one of the participating firms, said the interns need training on employability skills, entrepreneurship and other capacity building initiatives.

He faulted the education set up of the country which does not provide for workplace skills, adding that this is the main reason why many graduates remain unemployed.

“The thrust of the GIS, therefore, is to partly address this problem by bridging the gap between school and labour market and provide the graduates with something to do and somewhere to go, while they continue their job search,” Michael said.

Implemented by the Federal Ministry of Finance, the GIS is a social "safety net component of SURE-P that provides short term employment for graduates.

It began in October 2012.