Olori Janet Afolabi has unveiled the Youth, Development Academy Apomu. The event took place recently in the Alapomu Palace Hall in Apomu, headquarters of Isokan Local Government Area of Osun State.

The Academy is embarking on massive skills acquisition training programme for about 300 youths in Apomu community. Olori Janet in her welcome address said the primary objective of the Academy is to keep the young people of Apomu land productively occupied and help them become self-reliant.

She added that the Academy will provide for the impoverished young people an avenue to sustain themselves and their families.

Yemi Lawal, Osun State Commissioner for Youths and Sports, said the youths should take advantage of the training because it is part of the major Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) which Nigeria is set to achieve in 2030. Lawal was impressed by two female students Suliyat Adeniyi and Iqmot Oladejo from Adrem Academy who sang Apomu Anthem in Yoruba and English and he offered them scholarship throughout their secondary school education.

Also speaking Pastor Titilayo Femi Kings, Co-Founder and Director of Operations LEAD Transformation Initiative and partner in the project encouraged the youth to go into farming in order to create jobs and wealth. He added that skill acquisition is a recipe for eradicating extreme poverty and hunger. He said the possession of these skills will enable the youths contribute maximally to national development.

In his contribution, His Royal Majesty, Oba Kayode Adenekan Afolabi, who gave his royal blessing said, there is need for the youths to be empowered so that they can be financially independent and contribute meaningfully to the development of the community. According to him the initiative will reduce unemployment and poverty in the community.

About 300 youths are to be trained in ICT, Graphics design shoe making, fashion designing, hair dressing, barbing, adire making. Others include how to produce soap, air freshener, disinfectant, bleach for removing stains on clothes.

George Onuma, Business Consultant to the Academy, said Apomu land will benefit in the long term because societal ills can be greatly reduced when poverty and hopelessness are gradually eradicated.

•PHOTO: R-L; Olori Janet Afolabi; His Royal Majesty, Oba Kayode Adenekan Afolabi; Osun State Commissioner for youth and Sports, Yemi Lawal; and Co-Founder of LEAD, Pastor Titilayo Femi Kings at the unveiling of the Youth, Development Academy Apomu

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