The Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education (OSSAP-TVEE) has announced the continued rollout of the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS), a Federal Government initiative aimed at lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within 10 years.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education, Dr Abiola Arogundade, said the programme is a key pillar of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which recognises Nigerian youths as critical drivers of the country’s economic transformation.
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According to her, the NPRGS is designed to equip young Nigerians with practical, marketable skills while promoting entrepreneurship, self-reliance and economic inclusion.
The programme launched its pioneer cohort in Abuja on June 30, 2025, with an intensive 10-day training in cybersecurity and web development, alongside a solar energy installation upscaling track.
Arogundade described the Abuja pilot as a success, saying participants who initially approached the programme with scepticism completed the training with practical skills, including building their first websites and gaining knowledge of digital security fundamentals.
She added that graduates of the pilot received laptops and certificates of completion, while the Abuja phase attracted more than 7,000 applications, demonstrating strong interest in the initiative.
Building on the pilot, OSSAP-TVEE said the programme is now expanding across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, with each zone hosting 200 trainees for training sessions lasting between 10 days and two weeks.
The office said the skills offered in each location are determined by local market demand, relevance and the preferences of participants. A total of 1,200 Nigerian youths are expected to benefit from the initial nationwide phase.
In Oyo State, which represents the South-West zone, training is scheduled to commence on September 28, 2026, and will run for two weeks, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily.
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Participants in Oyo will receive training in graphics and artificial intelligence (AI) design, makeup and fashion designing.
In Enugu State, one of the designated training hubs in the South-East, participants will be trained in makeup, solar energy installation and fashion designing.
The solar energy component will cover panel installation, maintenance and off-grid solutions.
In Kebbi State, which represents the North-West zone, training will focus on graphics and AI design, fashion design, and agriculture, particularly yoghurt production, dairy processing, packaging and small-scale agribusiness.
The programme will also provide participants with training kits to enable them to continue practising and earning a livelihood after completion.
Graphics and AI trainees will receive laptops, makeup trainees will receive fully equipped makeup kits, fashion designing participants will receive sewing machines and starter kits, while agriculture trainees will receive fermentation kits for yoghurt production.
Arogundade said the initiative is ultimately aimed at equipping Nigerian youths with practical skills, reducing unemployment and underemployment, and creating opportunities for entrepreneurship and self-reliance.
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She said the programme would also contribute to the Federal Government’s broader objective of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within 10 years through economic growth and targeted social protection.
OSSAP-TVEE called on state governments, traditional rulers, community leaders and the private sector to partner with the Federal Government as the programme expands to more states across the country.