{"id":13001,"date":"2026-11-09T09:19:05","date_gmt":"2026-11-09T09:19:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/11\/09\/group-empowers-distributes-e300000-worth-items-206-lagos-youths-businessday-ng\/"},"modified":"2026-11-09T09:19:05","modified_gmt":"2026-11-09T09:19:05","slug":"group-empowers-distributes-e300000-worth-items-206-lagos-youths-businessday-ng","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/11\/09\/group-empowers-distributes-e300000-worth-items-206-lagos-youths-businessday-ng\/","title":{"rendered":"Group empowers, distributes \u20ac300,000 worth items 206 Lagos youths\u00a0 – Businessday NG"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was not just another empowerment ceremony. It was the end of a two-year journey.\n<\/p>\n

SOS Children\u2019s Villages Nigeria on Saturday distributed working tools and equipment worth \u20ac300,000 to 206 young people in Lagos under its Empowering Lagos Youths (ELY) project \u2013 a project designed to move young people away from poverty, give them decent jobs, and help them start their own businesses.\n<\/p>\n

From solar panel installation kits to HP laptops, Canon EOS cameras, hair styling equipment, tailoring machines and IT tools, each item was personalised. No generic package. Each participant got what matched the trade he or she trained for.\n<\/p>\n

Speaking at the event, Eghosa Erhumwunse, the Country Director of SOS Children\u2019s Villages Nigeria,\u00a0 said the project, which started in January 2025 and ends in December 2026, was deliberately built to do more than hand out tools.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cLike you can tell from the name, it\u2019s all about Empowering Lagos Youths, ELY. The idea is to accelerate the empowerment of young people to move them away from poverty and provide them with opportunity for decent job and also empower them to start up their own business,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is very important considering the economic situation and how much young people are always on the receiving end. We as an organisation work with young people to ensure we help them, support them to achieve their aspiration so that they can become responsible individuals and be able to build their own family in the long run.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Erhumwunse said the 206 youths went through rigorous training before the distribution. \u201cThese young people you have seen today, they\u2019ve been tested and they are trusted. They have gone through a lot of training, vocational training skills. They\u2019ve gone through entrepreneurship. They have gone through a whole lot of rigorous process including mental health and psychosocial support, because we often forget that young people face challenges.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe training we\u2019ve given to them is not enough for them to deal with situations they will face while even doing their own business or working as the case may be,\u201d he added.\n<\/p>\n

The project was funded by SOS Children\u2019s Villages\u2019 sister organisation in Germany, Children\u2019s Villages Worldwide (CVW), with local partners, trainers, hairdressers and artisans forming an ecosystem for sustainability. \u201cWe believe in local partnership. We have trainers, hairdressers and all other artisans. So we\u2019re able to work with them. It\u2019s an ecosystem because it\u2019s still the same environment these young people will find themselves. So why don\u2019t we begin to enable the ecosystem so they can interact for the sustainability of whatever trade they decide to go into afterwards,\u201d Erose explained.\n<\/p>\n

The target was 200 participants. SOS exceeded it. \u201cWe targeted 200 participants. We tried to avoid using the word beneficiaries. They are participants. In some instances, we got more than we needed. A few of them left, but at least we achieved more than what we targeted. Today we achieved more than 200, slightly more than 200. About 206 or thereabouts. So it\u2019s a success for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the items, he said: \u201cYou have some who are into installation of solar panel. You have IT gurus. You can see the computers there. You have those who want to go into hair styling. You have those who want to go into tailoring. It\u2019s personalised, not generic. Every individual decides what you want to do based on the outcome of your training.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

The project covered the entire Lagos State, with an open and transparent selection process. \u201cWe advertised it. Young people applied. Those of you who understand what we do in SOS, you know we are very strict with our selection criteria. We put it out there for vulnerable young people, people who are hard to reach, to be able to have this opportunity. I believe that\u2019s the right thing to do,\u201d Erose said.\n<\/p>\n

Speaking on the cost of the project, he said that the entire project for two years is about \u20ac300,000.\n<\/p>\n

Lagos State Government, he said, is a partner but not financial in this case, but in development agenda. \u201cWe work with them. We came to their development agenda. And we are part and parcel of what Lagos State is doing.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

He disclosed that SOS, which operates in 136 countries, will continue to run projects, he assured. \u201cThese are project-based. And we\u2019ve been running a lot of projects. We\u2019ll continue to run projects as far as it impacts children and young people. That\u2019s why we\u2019re here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked how SOS will ensure the tools are not sold, Erhumwunse was honest. \u201cWe have a mechanism in place. We cannot guarantee 100%. I mean, we are human. But we have a mechanism in place. And those who will follow through with them, who will support them, they\u2019re also there. Post-empowerment support is there.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Celia Dalyop, a photographer, received a Canon EOS camera and an HP laptop.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t pay anything for it, I didn\u2019t pay a dime for it. I\u2019m very, very grateful for this,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n

She got to know about the programme through a friend in Abuja who works in SOS Abuja branch. \u201cI was assigned to a training centre for three months and then I did another three months internship with a professional photographer. I intend to use it to build my skill, build myself, build my brand, build my business, to just capture moments and make money from it.\u201d She is already active on social media, and said she is working towards getting a space on the Island for her studio.\n<\/p>\n

Ashogbon Goodness Tibiebi, a data analyst, could not hide her joy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel so happy. I don\u2019t know how to express it, but I\u2019m just happy for the milestone and everything, the journey so far,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n

She got the link through a relative and signed up. She trained for six months, having had no prior experience in data analysis.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore now, I had a little knowledge of data analysis, but I was very confused at first. If you walk up to me, I\u2019m not really confident enough. But at this point, now, after this training, I\u2019m bold enough. Data analysis doesn\u2019t just stop here. It\u2019s something I keep on learning. So I can beat my chest, that whatever comes my way now, I don\u2019t have to start panicking.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Goodness, a student of Accounting at Miva Open University, plans to build herself, help others, and eventually teach data analysis in schools and privately, like an academy.\n<\/p>\n

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Businessday NG<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was not just another empowerment ceremony. It was the end of a two-year journey. SOS Children\u2019s Villages Nigeria on Saturday distributed working tools and equipment worth \u20ac300,000 to 206… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13002,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}