It was a time to learn and re-learn for the over 100 youths that are the seventh and eighth set of beneficiaries of an empowerment programme put in place by a non-governmental organisation based in Ibadan, Human of Substance Empowerment Initiative (HOSEI), as part of its annual youth empowerment conference as they had an educative session with the deputy governor of Oyo State, Engr Rauf Olaniyan.
Engr Olaniyan exposed the beneficiaries to the importance of entrepreneurship as a viable means of financial independence, adding that education with vocational skills is the new normal in today’s world.
The deputy governor emphasised that education is not supposed to stifle vocational skills but improve the ability of individuals to make a difference and address issues of unemployment besieging the nation.
He urged the beneficiaries to utilise what they had learnt and not take it for granted because they did not pay for it, adding that the trainers didn’t give them the chance to waste it but to put it to work to better their situations and also train others to make the society a better place.
He lauded HOSEI for the impact the association has had on hundreds of youths and appreciated the trainers for applying their talents and resources to raise a new generation of productive youths.
The graduation ceremony was for the seventh and eighth set of beneficiaries, making it 800 youths that have befitted from the organisation’s empowerment initiative which is aimed at discouraging young people from engaging in social vices like prostitution, internet scam and other vices out of idleness or in a bid to make ends meets by encouraging the indigent youngsters to engage in entrepreneurial projects that will enable then to pay their bills and further their education.
The President of the organisation, Barrister Abiade Olawanle Abiola said many of their past beneficiaries now have own striving businesses and some have become the breadwinners of their families in spite of their young age and the fact that many have risen to the challenge of sending themselves to school and taking care of their younger siblings.
According to her, HOSEI was established primarily to empower women and youths to live in the fullness of their potentials in the consciousness of their human rights and the preservation of those rights and engage in activities that will create awareness on Women’s Human Rights, expose how these rights are being violated and abused; reveal the negative effects of the violations and abuse of these rights; educate, enlighten and positively influence the public on women issues and relationships and empower youths and less privileged women through vocational skills and mentorship among others.
She added that, “since we started years back, it has been a success story. We thank God for how far we have come. We are happy that HOSEI has been able to touch the lives of hundreds of youths and give them financial independence with the help of good people who opened their businesses and sacrificed time and efforts to push this dream. We are getting better by the year and we intend to do more.
“It is my belief that if we allow these young ones to move around aimlessly while awaiting admission, we will make them vulnerable to cybercrime, prostitution and other vices. We want them empowered so they can be financially independent to shun vices,” she stated.
Indeed, the fortune of another set of over 100 teenagers has been changed in the space of six months as teenagers that have no known skills, now have the required ability to stand on their own and become employers of labour as they start a life-changing journey instead of wasting their time engaging in irrelevant and unproductive activities while awaiting admissions into higher institutions of learning.
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