The Katsina State Government will link the 73 unemployed graduates who did not benefit from the N24 million National Fadama III programme to financial institutions who would offer them suitable loan packages

Alhaji Mannir Yakubu, the Deputy Governor, gave the assurance during the closing ceremony of the two-week training for the selected unemployed graduates by the National Fadama (III) Programme on Saturday in Katsina.

To the 200 successful beneficiaries, Yakubu, who was represented by Alhaji Idris Tune, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, advised them to make judicious use of the funds.

The National Fadama III Additional Financing programme has trained 293 unemployed graduates in the state in different agricultural enterprises.

The various enterprises include crop production, poultry production, livestock production, fish production and Agro-business.

“I wish to draw the attention of the beneficiaries that will scale through the final selection of the National Fadama to make use of the golden opportunity to utilise the funds and resources given to them judiciously.

“The beneficiaries should strive to produce the commodities under their respective enterprises and should train other unemployed graduates in their farms as employees,”Yakubu said.

He stated that the Federal and state governments had designed policies and programmes aimed at addressing unemployment of graduates in the country.

Earlier in his remarks, the Fadama III National Communication Officer, Mr Bashir Safana hadsaid that state government stands to benefit immensely from the training given to the 273 unemployed graduates.

Also, the Managing Director of the state Agricultural and Rural Development Agency, Alhaji Ibrahim Musawa said that the agency would forward a request to the state government to provide employment to those that did not get the grant.

“The state government will employ them as extension workers as the state is badly in need of extension workersas one extension worker now provide his service to over 1,000 person which is wrong,” he disclosed.

NAN reports that the National Fadama Programme had designed the graduate unemployed training scheme with the aim of providing entrepreneurial training skills to beneficiaries with the aim of getting jobs for them. (NAN)