NDE’s director-general, Mallam Abubakar Nuhu-Fikpo, said this yesterday at the flag-off of the two-day training in Owerri.Nuhu-Fikpo, who was represented by the NDE coordinator in Imo, Mrs. Ngozi Ihenacho, said the beneficiaries, 180 persons from each of the three geo-political zones of the state, had earlier benefitted from the directorate’s basic business training.

He added that the ESPW was an offshoot of the federal government’s special public works program organized to capture 774,000 nationwide, 1000 persons from each local council area. He exhorted the participants to take the training seriously, adding that those with outstanding performance at the end of the training would stand the chance of receiving business grants from the federal government.

“We are grateful to President Muhammadu Buhari for this step in the right direction which demonstrates that the federal government is committed to lifting Nigerians out of poverty,” he said.

The director of, public works department of the NDE, Mrs. Roseline Olaomi, said participants would get free lunch throughout the training as an indication of the government’s commitment to the program. represented by Mrs. Francisca Ezeaku, a public works officer, urged the participants to justify efforts put into the training by attending all sessions and carefully following instructions.