Graduate employment: FG to release names of successful applicants

THE Presidency on Sunday said it would soon release the names of 200,000 successful candidates to be employed in various fields.

According to a statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President, Laolu Akande, in Abuja, the names to be released would be the first batch of the 500,000 persons to be recruited to work as teachers, agriculture and health workers in their communities from December 1, 2016.

It said while the 200,000 were selected about two weeks ago, their names have now been sent to state governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) who it said would deploy them to their specific programme assignments.

The statement added that the names would also be published this week on the N-Power internet portal, while the participants would start receiving SMS messages informing them of their selection as from Monday, November 21, 2016.

The Presidency encouraged state governments to post the names of the successful first batch applicants in their local government areas while there would be further public announcements.

It added: “Between now and the end of the month, the states and the FCT would be engaged in deploying the graduates who would formally start working and earning their stipends on December 1, 2016.

“Of the 200,000 first batch, 150,000 of them would teach, 30,000 would work in the Agric sector and 20,000 in Healthcare delivery covering the three specific programme assignments.

“The N-Power Volunteer Corps is an expression of President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to invest in the human capital development of Nigerian citizens, particularly our young people.

“The N-Power programme is also an innovative means to enhance ailing public services in the area of basic education and primary healthcare.

“Also in the agric sector, it is aimed at achieving self-sufficiency by giving our farmers relevant advisory services.

The statement congratulated the successful applicants and encouraged them to take the opportunity seriously by learning the skills that will brighten their future.

It also implored them to serve their communities with commitment and dedication.

It informed that for those who have not been selected at this time, there was a waiting list based on the total number of applicants, assuring that subsequent batches would absorb more of the qualified applicants.

It explained: “All together, the N-Power will engage and train 500,000 young unemployed graduates.

“It is a paid volunteering programme of a two-year duration that engages graduates in their immediate communities, where they will assist in improving the inadequacies in the education, health, and agriculture sectors.

“The 500,000 graduates under the N-Power Corps programme will be trained in skills that will enable them exit after two years to economically viable job and business opportunities.

“As part of the programme, the participants would own tablets that will contain information necessary for their specific engagements, as well as information for their continuous training and developments.

“Participants will be provided teaching, instructional, and advisory solutions in four main focus areas, and will be paid a monthly stipend of N30,000 during the programme.

“The four main focus areas are in basic education, agriculture extension services, public health and community education (civic and adult education).”