MinDiver: FG present package to 3rd batch of gemstone, Jewellery trainees

Federal government through the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, on Thursday, presented starter pack to the third batch of the training programme for skill acquisition in the jewelry and gemstone sub-sector of the mineral and metals industry.

It recalled that, the training is a third series of the skill acquisition programme is funded by the World Bank through the Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification Project (MinDiver), admitted 30 trainees from across the country for this batch.

The Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, while speaking at the graduation ceremony, in Abuja, said that the training is a historic skills to support solid minerals value chain is non negotiable.He noted that President, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu pledged to explore all possible opportunities to create jobs particularly for the youths through vocational skills training.

He said: “With over two million Nigerians active participation, the Solid Minerals sector is a critical national asset with appropriate capacity to open opportunities for gainful employment to Nigerians so the graduates are expected to go and flourish.”

He appealed with state governments to partner with the Ministry by sponsoring at least 10 youths per local governments for training to acquire this highly profitable skills, he added that, faculty will be mobilised to any state that is ready to empower their youths to impart their technical knowledge and demonstrate the procedures for using solid minerals to embelish the beauty of our people.

The Minister said that Nigerians has no business going abroad to buy jewelry in view of her large potential to contribute immensely to jewelry-making global market.

He said: “The value of gemstone increases when it is cut and polished, however, majority of gemstones mined in Nigeria are being exported without any value addition since the technical know-how and machinery required in cutting, polishing and finishing jewelry are generally lacking in the country. To bridge these gaps, it became necessary to build capacity in jewellery making and design.“The Ministry drew up a roadmap for the development of Nigeria’s mineral resources and the MinDiver Project which has been supporting its implementation as part of its effort at facilitating downstream sector development aimed at enhancing value-addition to mineral products. This Master Training on jewellery making and design is one of such initiatives.

In his remarks, the project coordinator for MinDiver, Engr. Sallim Salaam, said that the graduates should consider themselves fortunate to have been selected for the programme, as the selection process was highly competitive.

He also encourage the graduates to take the skill acquisition programme learnt very seriously as the knowledge they have acquired would be valuable for a lifetime.

He said: “The programme was launched in November 2021 as part of the Ministry’s efforts to develop the downstream sector of the industry, create employment opportunities, empower young people, alleviate poverty, and create wealth.

“The training are receiving is the first of its kind in Nigeria, which is designed explicitly to equip individuals with the necessary skills to compete globally. ”

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Mary Ogbe, who was represented by the Director of Human Resource Management Department in the Ministry, Mohammed Suleiman, commended the Hon. Minister for his most valuable support enabling the completion of the empowerment project within his short time in the ministry.