FG targets 400,000 jobs through locally-made pencils

The Federal Government yesterday in Enugu said the country must stop importing pencils in the next two years.

Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonaya Onu, gave the directive at the Projects Development Institute, PRODA.

Onu equally mandated the institute to produce the first made-in-Nigeria six-cylinder engine.

He said apart from boosting the country’s economy, production of pencils by PRODA would create about 400,000 jobs which is one of the main thrusts of Presi­dent Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The minister who spoke after a facility tour of PRODA establishments at Emene and Iva Valley, both in Enugu State, regretted that despite the fact that Nigeria has the capacity to manufacture pencils, it has continued to import them.

He assured the management of PRODA that the ad­ministration of President Buhari is committed to creating new jobs, promising that his ministry would support PRODA to meet its mandate.

His ministry, he assured, would assist the institute in achieving its target objectives of contributing mean­ingfully to the nation’s technological breakthrough.

He requested the assistance of the institute in giving technical training that would enable many unemployed youths roaming the streets to acquire skills that could equip them to fend for themselves.

Earlier in his address, the chief executive officer of PRODA, Dr. Agunanna, had disclosed that part of the imported machines that would have enabled PRODA take-off with full scale production of pencils are withheld at the Wharf in Lagos.

He assured that when the machines are released to PRODA, it would embark on mass production of pencils.

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