Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu pledged a 100% increase in capital subvention to LSETF at the second edition of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), which was held in conjunction with the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget (MEPB) employment summit.
The governor doubled the agency’s budget in an effort to expand access to capital for budding entrepreneurs seeking to expand their businesses through soft loans and other forms of funding.
This was revealed by Sanwo-Olu during the second edition of the Lagos Employment Summit, which was organized by LSETF. The event was held at Eko Hotels and Suites in Victoria Island, Lagos, with the theme ‘Sustainable Job Creation Strategies: Collective Action and Prosperity for All.’
The incentive, according to Sanwo-Olu, will bolster other state government initiatives aimed at empowering and upskilling innovative young people, as well as providing support grants for established businesses.
The governor stated that with the increased allocation, more entrepreneurs would be included in grant allocations to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), lowering the state’s unemployment rate.
“We have seen that LSETF can work, and it is working,” he said. We’ve seen the agency’s ability to continue to create job opportunities for our teeming productive residents. I am convinced that if we entrust the agency with a lot more capital grants to support businesses and innovative people, we can achieve a lot more in terms of lowering the unemployment rate in Lagos.
“LSETF has the capability, as evidenced by its performance over the last four years. The agency has the potential to double its employment numbers if funding is increased. Only by increasing the subvention will we be able to demonstrate our commitment to lowering the unemployment rate. I inquired about the agency’s budget and was informed of its size. This is a public announcement that the subvention will be doubled.
“We’re doing this because the LSEFT management team has demonstrated that the intervention can increase job opportunities in a practical way.” In this regard, I urge our funding and development partners to double their contributions to the agency, because more people in the state will be lifted out of poverty if they have access to business financing. We’d be empowering more people to create wealth and spread prosperity in this way.”
The governor claimed that his administration had committed over N10 billion in grants to strengthen LSEFT’s activities over the last three years, assisting 34,000 MSMEs.
The governor claimed that the intervention was responsible for the 6.7% drop in the unemployment rate recorded by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) prior to the Coronavirus pandemic’s disruption.
Sanwo-Olu stated that the agency needed to restructure its operations in order to provide financial assistance to more businesses in the state, emphasizing that COVID-19 could no longer be used as an excuse to prevent productive people from creating wealth through entrepreneurship.
“We can’t keep using COVID-19 as an excuse because the pandemic is now over.” We must devise strategies that will provide opportunities for a large number of our youths in the coming years. Young people look to us for guidance and rely on us. LSEFT would be stronger and better under our leadership, according to one of our campaign promises. Sanwo-Olu said, “I charge the Board of Trustees and the management team to seize this opportunity to propel LSEFT even further toward becoming a global brand that we can all be proud of.”
The governor promised that the summit’s outcomes would be incorporated into the state’s governing agenda.
The governor and 70 other notable speakers, including Mrs. Bola Adesola, Chairman LSETF; Mr. Sam Egube, Lagos State Commissioner for Economic Development and Planning; and Mr. Aloysius Uche Ordu, Director, Africa Growth Initiative, presented various papers on the future of work as technology advances.
They discussed topics such as the Future Workforce: ‘Gig Economy’ – Opportunities, Challenges, and Success Strategies; Women’s Economic Empowerment as a Tool for Economic Growth; and Women’s Economic Empowerment as a Tool for Economic Growth. In emerging markets, the orange economy is a driver of youth employment. Critical areas that drive youth employment; Partnering for Impact Among other things, Job Centers: Preparing Youth for a Resilient Career.
