The Director General of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Sir Joseph Ari, has disclosed that the fund has spent N24.6 billion as payment for Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) allowances in the last seven years.
He said under his administration, ITF also paid over N29 billion as reimbursement to more than 2,242 contributing companies within the same period in line with the act establishing it.
Ari disclosed this in Jos while receiving an Award of Excellence in Leadership and Human Capital Development from the Correspondent’s Chapel of the Plateau State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).
He said the SIWES processes had been restructured for seamless and more effective management in light of prevailing challenges and to actualise its objectives fully.
“When I came into office, the SIWES was bedevilled by a backlog of unpaid students’ and supervisory allowances, but we assiduously worked towards reducing the backlog. Since 2016, N23,699,280,000 has been paid as students allowance, while N1,051,277,751 was paid as supervisory allowance within that same period,” he stated. “Since 2016, over N29,964,150,308.68 has been paid to more than 2,242 companies as reimbursement, which is an outcome of the innovations I brought on board.”
Ari noted that ITF has pursued this mandate using apprenticeship training in both formal and informal sectors, skills upgrading and broadening for on-the-job development among its many activities.
Calling on other agencies of government involved in human capacity development to find ways of working with it to make it in tackling the numerous national challenges, Ari observed that “with the institutionalisation of the National Apprenticeship Training System (NATS), the ITF will enhance the capacity of artisans, craftsmen and technicians for employability and provide Nigerians with the relevant skills and competencies that will grow the economy.”
Chairman of the Correspondent Chapel, Mr Gyang Bere, said the award was in recognition of the DG’s quest to drive Nigeria out of poverty and fight unemployment through skills provision.
“Being a consummate administrator, a charismatic and a leader with foresight, we have noted with satisfaction your outstanding performance since you assumed duty as the director-general/chief executive of the Industrial Training Fund ITF in 2016,” said Bere.
