Cross River Governor Bassey Edet Otu Approves N1.5bn Youth Empowerment Programme

Cross River State Governor Senator Bassey Edet Otu approved the release of N1.499 billion for the Cross River Youth Skill Acquisition and Start‑up Empowerment Programme. The scheme will train 2,620 young people in vocational, technical and digital skills and provide them with start‑up kits.

Equipment to be supplied includes industrial sewing machines, laptops, cassava processing tools, motorcycles, solar‑powered freezers, washing machines, hand tillers, grain threshers, cake mixers, plantain slicers, solar clippers and manual water pumps. The governor said the initiative is “a strategic investment in the future of Cross River” and emphasized that “this intervention is not a procurement exercise; it is a deliberate economic transformation programme,” aimed at creating entrepreneurs and reducing youth unemployment.

The programme is presented as a means to turn trainees into employers, fostering self‑reliance and contributing to the state’s inclusive economic growth.