Npower to be Overhauled and Relaunched, Minister Says
The Nigerian Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, has announced plans to overhaul and relaunch the government’s Npower employment program for youth.
Npower is a social intervention program that aims to provide skills training and jobs to Nigerian youth. The program was launched in 2016 by the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
However, Dr Edu said that the current Npower program is flawed and unsustainable, having only reached 993,000 Nigerian youth out of a target of 5 million. She called for the program to be “totally rejected” in its current form.
Dr Edu outlined plans to overhaul Npower to be more effective. The changes would include new payment modalities to ensure timely disbursement of funds, expanding the number of beneficiaries, utilizing some in humanitarian roles, and providing clear guidelines on the duration of participation. The goal is to boost job creation and reduce high youth unemployment.
She admitted facing many challenges in reforming Npower, with more loopholes emerging. However, she stressed the need to fix the program to restore public trust and provide impactful skills training and jobs.
The Ministry aims to soon conclude modalities for the Npower overhaul and relaunch an improved version focused on empowering Nigerian youth. Dr Edu pleaded for patience from the youth as the ministry worked on the reforms.
She said that the ministry would communicate with the public on the next steps for Npower once the overhaul is completed. She urged youth to take advantage of the opportunity and apply for the program when it is relaunched.
