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| United States President, Barack Obama |
The United States has trained 150 Liberian migrants in Nigeria on entrepreneurial and vocational skills as part of efforts to enhance their resettlement in the country.
Also, 26 of the 150 trainees were provided with start-up vocational tools such as sewing machines, generators, hair dressing equipment, deep freezers among others.
Thousands of Liberian migrants had sought asylum in Nigeria during the two civil wars that tore apart the country between 1989 and 2003, killing more than 250,000 people and forcing some 750,000 to flee their homes.
However, their refugee status changed in Nigeria on June 30, 2012, when a cessation clause was invoked for the 5,289 asylum seekers in the country.
The empowerment scheme was implemented by the Nigeria Red Cross Society in collaboration with the Lagos Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency coordinated the training programme.
Speaking at the presentation of the start-up tools to the beneficiaries on Thursday, the United States Consul General in Nigeria, Mr. Jeffrey Hawkins, said the empowerment scheme was funded by Julia Taft Grant totalling $25,000.
He added that the grant was provided by the US State Department through the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration.
Hawkins said the handing over of start-up kits to the 26 beneficiaries was done with the hope of giving them an “opportunity to commence a new chapter in their lives.”
Hawkins said, “The empowerment scheme is primarily intended to support low-cost projects that assist these category of Liberians who have chosen to resettle in Nigeria. What we have done is to respond to critical gaps in assistance not addressed through larger and multi-cultural refugee programmes.
“It is our hope that this scheme will help in supplementing the efforts of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, the Nigeria Red Cross Society and other institutions who have been working for years to provide these people with support.”
A representative of the Consulate of the Republic of Liberia in Nigeria, Annie Broderick, expressed the gratitude of her home country to the US for the initiative.
She said, “A good number of them have decided to stay back and become self reliant in Nigeria. It’s important that they acquire some level of informal education through skills acquisition.
“I appreciate the efforts of the US Mission in Nigeria for the kind gesture extended to the people of Liberia in this country. This scheme will go a long way in improving their way of life in mainstream Nigeria.”
Head of Office, UNCHR, Lagos, Mrs. Josephine Smith, urged the beneficiaries to make good use of the tools and training received to better their lot.
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