Lagos State government has said it would train 10,000 craft persons to bridge the skills gap in the housing sector and also address the challenges of building collapse.
The training opportunity is opened to residents of the state that are above 18 years with basic training in the skills, either through technical colleges or the informal apprenticeship method.
According to the Ministry of Housing, the selection process will be based on first come, first served and forms can be obtained free at the Director of Administration and Human Resources office of the ministry in the state.
Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Kamar Olowoshago, who spoke during a media briefing to mark the commencement of the master craftsman training programme, said the initiative was by the governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to ensure safe and decent homes for Lagosians.
He said the training programme is quite crucial to the state’s policy of building decent homes for citizens under the pillar of making Lagos a 21st Century Economy in the T.H.E.M.E.S. Plus agenda.
He added that the master craftsman training programme was planned to enable residents, mainly youths in the construction trades, to update their skills and acquire other required competencies.
“This is being done to make the artisans more qualified to contribute their quota to the housing development efforts of the state. Also, the training will make them more employable and hence improve their economic well-being,” he said.
Olowoshago said the intensive six-week training programme would centre on critical construction trades, such as electrical installation and maintenance works, painting and decorating, plumbing and pipe-fitting, carpentry and furniture making and masonry (block-laying and concreting).
According to him, there will also be classes on connected areas, such as Customer Relations, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Health and Safety. The training will be conducted by experts in the field who will train and retrain participants based on current trends. Locations of the present training programme are the technical colleges at Ikotun in Alimosho Local Council and Ikorodu in Ikorodu Local Council of the state.
He said the training programme would ensure that artisans in the state could compete with others in the region.