The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) in Enugu State says it registered 40,000 unemployed youths in the state in 2012.
The Coordinator of the directorate in the state, Mr Nnamdi Asomugha, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Monday.
Asomugha said the registration was carried out in the 17 local government areas of the state, adding that women constituted a greater percentage of those registered.
“This year, we registered 40,000 unemployed persons in Enugu State. We went to the local governments and embarked on massive registration of unemployed persons.
“The idea is to have a profile of unemployment in Enugu State, and to have an idea of the social characteristics of those who are unemployed, where they reside and their competencies, if any.
“We have the data already and the registration was done within a week. We have done the analysis of those unemployed and majority of them are women,’’ the coordinator said.
Asomugha said the directorate trained 2,000 persons on such skills as cosmetology, basic computer application, carpentry, GSM repairs, rural agricultural development scheme and wielding, among others.
He said the directorate would introduce a new scheme tagged “graduate coaching scheme’’ in 2013 which would ensure the employment of about 500 graduates in the state.
“We are opening coaching centres in local government areas where unemployed graduates with university degrees or higher qualifications will be engaged to teach or coach students who are preparing for WASCE, NECO or those sitting for entrance examinations to higher institutions.
“It is a new scheme to be introduced. We are working on the modalities for next year. The scheme will fully come on board. The NDE will pay them monthly stipends. We will engage them for a period of 12 months,’’ he said.
Asomugha appealed to the Federal Government to address the problem of corruption in the country to give the youths opportunity to be employed. (NAN)