Sokoto state government has sponsored the training of no fewer than 79 local miners to acquire modern skills to takeover several Federal Government mining sites in the state. Malam Imam Imam, the Special Adviser to Gov. on Media and Public Relations, made the disclosure in an interview on Tuesday in Sokoto. Imam said the gesture was to boost solid mineral potential of the state, adding it was one area that had received the state government’s attention and focus for development.
Imam said beneficiaries were expected to also train others in the mining communities, stressing that the idea was to key into Federal Government’s agenda on diversification of the economy and to boost employment opportunity among youths. The governor’s aide said the initiative had started having positive impacts on the lives of people of the state. He said that the state government was partnering with Raw Material Research and Development Council, Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals and Federal Ministry of Environment as well as other stakeholders to drive the project.
He explained that the state government, in addition had designed series of empowerment programmes for women and youths as part of its efforts to making them become self reliant and productive in the society. Imam said such training was either organised directly by government’s ministries and agencies in collaboration with Industrial Training Funds (ITF), National Directorate of Employment (NDE) and other stakeholders with similar mandates. According to him, Sokoto State Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Development Agency (SOSEDAN) is vigorously facilitating the growth of various entrepreneurs through coordination of its activities, access to funds, markets and management at different levels in the state.
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