The Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Youth and Sports Madam Adama Ngum Njie recently presided over the opening of a five days Entrepreneurship Training Program for Returnees organized by the National Enterprise Development Initiative (NEDI) at the Njawara Agricultural Training Center in the North Bank Region.
Speaking at the occasion the youth and Sports Permanent Secretary Adama Ngum Njie stated that the training seeks to transfer the essential management skills to the returnees and would link them to other partners for Financial and Technical support to start and reinforce their businesses within the Country.
She noted that training Program will enable them among others marketable skills for self -employment through the creation of enterprises and employment opportunities.
She pointed out that her Ministry has a strategic vision as in line with the National Development Plan on areas of youth productive engagements through series of interventions with structures namely NEDI, National Youth Council(NYC) National Sports Council (NSC) and President International Award (PIA) noting that this is as a results of the Government recognition of the need to evolve pragmatic and workable strategies that will impact positively on the many Socio- economic challenges confronting the Gambian youth and returnees in particular .
She further stated that the Ministry has concluded the Validation of the youth entrepreneurship policy based on the National Youth Conference and Festival resolution in 2017, harnessing agriculture enterprise potentials will go a long way in providing the employment needs of our young people ,and furthermore provide food security for the population ,and can greatly mitigate the migration challenges .
She said the Ministry will continue to support the efforts of the NEDI to stay relevant ,sustainable and serve the purpose of youth enterprise and entrepreneurship development to generate employment and enterprise opportunities. noting that the package for the training program targets 30 youth and majority of whom are returnees .
She advice the youth to take the training seriously and utilize the skills gain effectively to create enterprises and youth employment.
Abass Bah General Manager of the National Enterprise Development initiative (NEDI) said NEDI is rolling out entrepreneurship and business plan development for youth and women entrepreneurs venturing into business through out the country
He thanked YEP,UN system ,GIEPA,Ministry of Agriculture ,FASDEP and GCAV, Department of Community Development and other government agencies.
Bah noted that NEDI will support and will ensure and provide the mentoring and advisory services required to start and run a business
Among others who graced the occasion were the Governors representative , Women Bureau executive director representative , representative of the Alkalo of Njawara and the representative of the Regional Agricultural director for North Bank Region.