The Federal Government has revealed plans to employ an additional 350,000 graduates in 2017 under the N-Power Volunteer Corps, a component of the government’s Social Investment Programmes.
According to the Senior Special Assistant to the Acting President on Media Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, President Muhammadu Buhari had requested an appropriation of N157.75bn in the 2017 budget estimates for the N-Power scheme.
“350,000 unemployed graduates more would be hired and trained, alongside 50,000 non-graduates youths to be engaged as artisans and in other creative ventures.
“While we were able to engage 200,000 unemployed graduates last year, we will do 350,000 more this year.
“The plan in 2016 budget targeted one million poorest and vulnerable Nigerians. And in the 2017 budget, an additional N54.98bn has been allocated for the continuation of the N5,000 monthly social safety net payments to the poorest Nigerians.
“2017 implementation of the SIPs is going to be far more impactful than what we were able to do under the 2016 budget. So, Nigerians should expect more this year. The resolve of the Buhari presidency is that more lives must be touched positively under these programmes which Nigerians have come to appreciate”, he said.
