Sev-Av Foundation, a pet project of the former First Lady of Benue state, Mrs. Yemisi Suswam, has graduated a total of 152 students trained in various categories of skills.
Out of the number, 25 graduates of the Skills Acquisition programme were given various prizes for outstanding performances while some trainers were also rewarded for outstanding services.
Founder/Chief Executive Officer of the foundation Mrs. Suswam who presented the awards at their 12th graduation and prize giving ceremony in Makurdi, described the graduates “as the most vibrant,” in the life of the foundation.
Mrs. Suswam said her foundation had focused on school drop outs and young widows with the view to equiping them with skills that can help them out of despair, provide opportunities for them to contribute to the socio-economic stability of Nigeria and also achieve self actualisation.
She said it may be a tough decision for young graduates to look the way of skill acquisition but that it is a wise way out of idleness and hopelessness.
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“In Nigeria today, there is increasing need for young families to get a second job. Even if you are in a white colar job, you need an alternative dignified source of income to break even,” she said.
Mrs. Suswan who cautioned that wealth cannot be built by fraudulent ways, begging or pesting on the labour of others emphasized hard work, diligence and Godliness.
She therefore, implore the graduates to go out and seize every given opportunity in the society, deploying the skills acquired in the six months of training to manage and sustain their business, while urging them to eschew social vices, saying it is deadly.
Her husband, Senator Gabriel Suswam and Chairman, Board of Trustees of the foundation, lauded his wife’s determination in running the foundation acknowledging that it has, over the years, impacted many Benue youths.
“It appears I’m a very determined person but my wife is more determined. I don’t know how she does it but she has continued even after we left office”, said Suswam who also noted that he personally enjoys the benefits of the foundation.
He lamented that “we have imposed a lot of negativity on ourselves and because of politics, many people have refused to engage in meaningful ventures. What my wife has done is set the pace and I advise people to leaverage
on it.”
The Benue North East Senator urged graduates on the streets, without jobs to take advantage of skills acquisition centres in the state to improve on themselves and add value to their lives and the society at large.
The Next Edition reports that the graduate categories include Fashion Design, Information and Communication Technology, ICT, Beauty Enhancement Therapy, Catering and Spice Making, as well as Knitting and Beading.
