BY IFEANYI UWAGWU/RITA OYIBOKA
Delta State is set to train 6,000 young people in the next 12 months under its new entrepreneurship initiative, with 2,000 students already enrolled in the first phase.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Entrepreneurship Development, Dr Donald Peterson, disclosed this during an exclusive interview with The Pointer crew in Asaba.
According to him, the programme is fully sponsored by the state government and comes at no cost to participants.
He explained that the scheme, tagged Delta-preneurship with two main initiatives: Tech-preneurship and Agropreneurship, aligns with the Governor Sheriff Oborevwori’s mandate to promote inclusive development and job creation.
According to him, “In the first wave at the University of Delta, Agbor, about 2,000 students participated. We are now extending it to community youth, and the interest has been overwhelming. We expect an additional 4,000 participants, reaching 6,000 within 12 months.
“Having established the Tech-preneurship initiative, we plan to introduce Agropreneurship when schools resume in September– October. This timing coincides with the Christmas rush, when micro-businesses purchase chickens, turkeys, and other items for the festive season.
“By the time we launch Agropreneurship, the number will grow further. Our vision is to train between 250,000 to 500,000 participants over 24 months, and we are exploring virtual training with Coursera so that participants can learn from home,” he said.
Peterson noted that many of the initiatives require minimal land or space. “For yam cultivation, we teach growing yams in sacks, which maximises space and improves growth. Coconut farming can utilise previously unused backyard land. Other ventures, such as BSF (Black Soldier Fly) and Azolla farming, can even be done in small rooms or backyards,” he explained.
Beyond start-ups, existing businesses are also set to benefit. He said that poultry farmers, for instance, can now produce their own feed using BSF or Azolla, cutting costs by up to 90 per cent.
Content creators and digital entrepreneurs, he disclosed are also being incorporated into the training modules, thus broadening the scope of opportunities.
“Delta-preneurship is about building an ecosystem of growth and innovation where both young people and established entrepreneurs can thrive under Governor Sherrif Oborevwori’s MORE Agenda,” Peterson added.
