Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency has disclosed its plan to train 5,000 Enugu youths in agro businesses and skill acquisition,

Director General of ‘Join the team for Gburugburu Campaign Organization, Mr. Tony Ukwuma, disclosed this on Wednesday, while distributing COVID-19 palliatives to traders at Afor Opi market in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State.

Ukwuma said the training was part of government efforts to cushion the effect of the novel coronavirus pandemic that had ravaged the economy of the country in particular and the world at large.

He said his group, which had been in existence since 2015, engaged in mobilisation of youths at the grass roots for the development of the state through agro businesses and skills acquisition.

Ukwuma, however, said that after training, the 5,000 youths would be given soft loans as startup capital through the Federal Government NISA Micro Finance Bank to establish small scale agro business.

He urged the youths of the state to take advantage of the training to be self-reliant, rather than loitering on the streets.

According to him, the State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, had provided the enabling environment for them to be productive.