Oyetola sustaining  economy with commerce and youth capacity development  -Aide

From Clement Adeyi, Osogbo

In this interview, his Special Adviser on Civic Engagement, Honourable Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, gives accounts of some particular areas that his administration has made remarkable impacts in its people-oriented governance agenda.

He also assured the  governor’s poise to build an enduring economy where people’s wellbeing and pursuit of happiness would become the hallmark of development in the state.

Governor Adegboyega Oyetola has been roundly described as a noiseless performer since he came on board in the last two years. What particular machinery does he apply in driving the wheels of development in the state?

In every polity, there exists an inextricable link between economic sustenance and human capacity development. This is why no responsible government can sit idle without engaging its people productively in all forms of commercial and industrial activities because human resource remains the hub around which sustainable development can be fostered. It is in this light that every government which seeks plenary development of a polity always seeks to invest in the people through a series of empowerment programmes.

It is not a misconception to assert that investment in human capacity has formed the fulcrum of Governor Oyetola’s administration. This is because of his conviction that, human capacity development is the panacea to economic advancement of the state. In view of this, the current administration has embarked on strategic programmes aimed at improving the life standard of the citizenry.

There is no gainsaying that Oyetola’s administration has fully committed itself to the plenary development of  commercial and economic activities via human capacity building through empowerments, vocational trainings, giving of loans and grant for business startups among others done under the bipartite efforts of both Ministries of Commerce, Industry and Cooperative; as well as Youth and Sports Development.

What specific programmes has government put in place to ameliorate post COVID- 19 hardship and in which particular areas have the people of the state benefitted from the programmes?

No fewer than 1,510 residents of the state have benefitted from the Post-COVID-19 Economic Intervention Programme; a state Empowerment Programme (SEEP) which was sponsored by Oyetola’s administration in conjunction with the Bank of Industry. By extrapolation, the initiative is a bottom pyramid programme where beneficiaries received #50,000 and others who were trained in vocational skills received #100,000 each.

Equally, under Oyetola’s administration, the cooperative societies as well as Medium and Small Enterprises are not left unattended to because the governor believes their activities form part of the focal drivers of the state economy. Because of the realization of their economic eminences, 50 cooperative societies and  several MSME’s were direct beneficiaries of a consolidated fund dedicated to the improvement of medium and small scale businesses by the Osun State Government in collaboration with the Bank of Industry. Under this initiative, N250,000,000 has been disbursed to traders and artisans in the state.

The state government under the focused leadership of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola has also facilitated household loan through which about 835 beneficiaries have received between N250,000 and N1,000,000 as support funds. Survival grant is another initiative of the Oyetola’s administration to give economic relief to the masses. 2,600 artisans and other trade groups in the state have been granted 30,000 per beneficiary while that of commercial transporters is underway.

In another way of using soft loan to give succor to the people, the state government has facilitated Micro Credit Agency Loan for 2,881 individuals, groups and MSME’s as #1,309,257,000 has been disbursed in the last two years. Under the State Government AGSMES loan, plan is still underway to give loans ranging from one million to ten million to the state residents.

To what extent does Oyetola’s administration initiate and sustain youth development agenda with a view to ensuring that the melee  against bad governance which shaped the recent #endSARS protests does not recur in the state because there are insinuations in the public domain that the youths are warming up to stage another protest?

As a way of engaging the youths productively, Oyetola’s administration has continually sustained the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (OYES) under which platform not less than 20,000 youths are empowered across the state. The current administration under the focused leadership of Governor Oyetola recently organized “Post-COVID Recovery Plan” with specific focus on the youths and through which not less than 5,000 youths across the state were empowered with requisite skills and necessary funding. Equally, payment of N500,000 to 3,634 youths and indigents by the federal government has been facilitated with a view to having our youths economically and productively engaged for sustainable development. This is one of the variants of Business Support Loans Facilitated for the teeming youths by the Oyetola’s administration.

With the large number of people who have benefitted from the avalanche of several intervention programs of Oyetola’s administration, it is no doubt that, human capacity building is yielding positive result.

To further give leverage for youth development, Oyetola’s administration has carefully packaged and unveiled a youth policy framework known as “4 E’s” namely: Youth Empowerment, Youth Engagement, Youth Entrepreneurship and Youth Education which is the state articulate action plan for youth development. The foregoing is in addition to N1.5 billion naira which the state government has already earmarked in the 2021 budget for the engagement of youths in Agriculture, ICT, Commerce, Mining,  Culture and Tourism among others.

Osun is believed to be a purely civil service state that does not have industrial presence.

What is Oyetola doing to industrialise the state to be able to galvanise youth employment?

 The administration is massively revamping the economy through industrialization and commercialization by the establishment of Osun Ethanol Bio-Refinery factory as well as the International Trade Centre/Industrial Hub and Inland Port, which are projected to create massive job opportunities to not less than 10,000 people respectively.

Under Oyetola’s administration, it is crystal clear that human capacity development is the centre point of driving the state economy as the most sustainable way. The ball has been effectively put in the court.  Oyetola is nipping the bud and hitting the nail on the head in his quest to build an enduring economy where people’s wellbeing and pursuit of happiness become the hallmark of development.