NAN-H -35
Goods
By Kola Adeyemi
Lokoja, Feb. 25, 2017 ( NAN) The Deputy Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Rep. Buba Jibrin has advised Nigerians to patronise locally-made goods to protect local industries and create jobs for the youth.
Jibrin gave the advice on Saturday in Lokoja while declaring open a five-day vocational training programme for 110 women selected from Lokoja and Kogi Local Government Councils.
He said that this would help the country to quickly come out of the economic recession.
According to him, the problem of unemployment, insecurity and poverty were largely due to Nigerians’ preference for foreign products at the expense of locally-manufactured ones.
He called for a change of attitude.
Jibrin, who is representing the Lokoja/Kogi Federal Constituency in the House, sponsored the workshop in partnership with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN).
“We cannot be importing tooth pick, processed cassava (gari), plastics and cutleries and expect our economy to grow. If care is not taken, we will be importing yam from China, ‘’ he said.
Jibrin said that the bill on Made-in-Nigeria goods recently sponsored by him was to compel all Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies to patronise locally-manufactured goods.
He said Nigerians should team up with the Federal Government in its quest to improve the economy.
The legislator said that change promised by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was not about sharing money to the people but about empowering Nigerians to witness positive changes.
Jibrin, who is the Deputy Majority Leader, said it was in the light of this, he partnered the SMEDAN to organise the workshop for 110 women selected across the 21 wards in his constituency.
He advised the women to take advantage of the workshop to better their lives and promised to give each of them N25, 000 as start-up capital.
The North Central Coordinator of SMEDAN, Mrs Charity Abah, in her remark said that the participants would be taken through training in soap and Izal production; and fish farming, processing and packaging.
She said that after the training, SMEDAN would help the women to start and sustain their businesses by helping them to facilitate access to finance.
Abah said the women would be arranged into cooperative groups for the purpose.
She, however, advised the women to be passionate about their vocation so as to achieve success and commended Jibrin for partnering with SMEDAN to better the lots of the women.
One of the participants, Mrs Rhamatu Mohammed, commended Jibrin and SMEDAN for their efforts directed at helping her and other women to become self-reliant and bread winners.
Mohammed thanked the legislator for his decision to give all participants start-up capital and promised that they would not disappoint him so that more women could benefit. (NAN)
KKA/AJA
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(Edited by Adeleye Ajayi)