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His Holiness Olumba Olumba Obu
By Akpan David, Calabar
No fewer than 230 Nigerian and other African youths are to be empowered and trained with a vote of, at least, N20 million earmarked by a renowned spiritual leader, His Holiness Olumba Olumba Obu.
70 of them have yet been selected from ten states in Nigeria in the first phase of the empowerment programme.
Secretary of the Brotherhood All Youths Assembly Enterprise Council, Dr Eneawaji Ukoima disclosed this to reporters in Calabar at the end of the presentation of starter packs to the beneficiaries.
The ten states innclude Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Enugu, Kaduna, Kogi and Rivers states.
They were trained on organic farming such as fish hatching and raring, mushroom, pepper, fluted pumpkin, Okro and Tomatoes among several others.
The BAYA Enterprise Council is headed by Patriarch Ibinabo Michael West.
Ukoima said the packs will enable the youths to put the various skills they learnt into use.
He said the gesture by the chief sponsor of the empowerments, the spiritual leader of Brotherhood of the Cross and Star, His Holiness Olumba Olumba Obu was to commemorate the annual convention of the Brotherhood All Youths Assembly (BAYA) where youths from across many countries will converge in Calabarr from 13th to 19th September 2021 to march round major cities and streets of Calabar on what they call Peace March.
“The beneficiaries have been asked to form themselves into cooperative groups to access greater benefits and funding.
“Our sponsor and leader has earmarked, at least, N20 million for the training and empowerment of Nigerian and other African youths in areas of modern agriculture, ICT, tailoring, and other assorted skills.”
According to him, the beneficiaries will be on a probation period of 12 months within which the BAYA council will monitor the progress of the cooperative.
“When we are satisfied with the successes achieved in the operation of the cooperative within the said time, the BAYA council in collaboration with the cooperative body will fix a date of ceremony for a formal transmission of full title/ownership of the starter packs to the cooperators/cooperative. The aim is to introduce additional fund to rejig and recapitalize the business of the cooperative organization.”
According to him, the packs include funds for renting of land, registration of cooperative societies, provision of N1M as take off grant for the 10 states at N100,000 each state.
He said they will also provide 20 mobile fish ponds for the 10 states, 4,000 fingerlings and seedlings in excess of 500; for tomatoes, fluted pumpkin, pepper among others.
He said the second phase of the training will be on Education which selection process will starts in September 2021.
