Dangote Cement has said that no less than 245 young people from the 16 host communities in Ibese, Ogun, have been empowered with different skills since the company started operating in the area.
Dangote Cement Ibese plant manager Azad Nawabuddin, in a statement issued on Sunday, said the empowerment program had a significant impact on the local economy.
Mr. Nawabuddin added that the company had also distributed starter packs to 30 apprentices, following an intensive three-month training in tailoring and fashion design for young people, in partnership with the Industrial Training Fund (ITF).
He said the training was to promote the company’s community youth empowerment program, designed to improve the economy of local communities by getting young people to become self-employed.
The plant manager explained that the company had carefully designed its youth empowerment plan to complement the government’s efforts to meet the employment expectations of the country’s youth.
According to Mr. Nawabuddin, the successful completion of the training marked another milestone in the company’s community investment journey.
This, he said, was in line with the cardinal goal of contributing to the long-term betterment of local communities by delivering and sustaining values for them.
“So far, 245 young people from the host communities of the Ibese plant have been trained and empowered in different skills since the start of operations at Ibese, with a significant impact on the local economy.
“The beneficiaries have joined the self-employed league in our town.
“This empowerment program is one more demonstration of the commitment of Dangote Cement Plc., Ibese plant, to improve the socioeconomic condition of neighboring communities.
“We are committed to the continued implementation of impactful social investments that will eradicate poverty and improve the standard of living in our host communities,” he said.
Mr. Nawabuddin urged gradients to make effective use of the opportunity given to them to become entrepreneurs and, by implication, employers of labor upon starting work.
“At Dangote, we are committed to implementing more meaningful programs that uplift our people, while we hope that you reciprocate this good gesture by contributing your share to the good of the organization and ensuring peaceful coexistence,” he said.
Also speaking, Commissioner of Community Development and Cooperatives in Ogun, Hamzat Ganiyu, praised the company for its many programs, which had aided the state government’s policy on youth economic empowerment.
He urged the beneficiaries to turn the training opportunities provided by the company into viable means of livelihood.
The commissioner called on other business organizations in the state to emulate Dangote Cement by helping to reduce youth unemployment and poverty at the local level through valuable social investments.
“The state government will continue to provide an enabling environment for businesses to thrive as the private sector plays a key role in the economic empowerment of the people of the state,” he said.
