Yakubu Busari
The Director General/Chief Executive of the Industrial Training Funds (ITF) Sir Joseph N. Ari has said ,with the purposeful leadership in Nigeria we will soon ripe industrial hubs of Africa also remarkably done well in the discharge of its mandate in the last 50 years.
The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) stated this Friday at the 50th anniversary of the Fund in Jos.
“These patriots; Dr. Abel Ubeku, Mrs. Nene Archibong, Alhaji Muhammad Dikko, Alhaji Lawal Tudun Wada, Alhaji Hassan Ahmad II, Prof. Olu Emenifo Akerejola, Prof. Longmas Sambo Waomuk, Dr. Juliet Chukkas Onaeko, have left indelible footprints and legacies that have ensured that the organisation has not merely survived, but continually remained relevant to the achievement of national policy goals and objectives,” he said.
He said ,the fund empowered over 500,000 graduates mostly youths in Tailoring, Information Technology and Cosmetology, in various training across the 36 states of the Federation including the FCT.
Sir Joseph Ari explained that the training and “distribution of start-up packs to beneficiaries of National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP), which was conducted by the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) amidst the Covid-19 pandemic is part of our efforts to provide Nigerians with technical skills for job and wealth creation.
Ari noted that “going by the report of the survey by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) , to the effect that unemployment was still hovering at over 33 percent while youth unemployment was as high as 44 per cent, it is obvious that more needs to be done.
“What is again very clear is that the efforts of the Federal alone cannot completely solve the problems of poverty and unemployment and the attendant fallouts.
“Indeed, the problems that stare us in the face today require Nigerians to pull together and synergise as institutions of Government, Corporate bodies and Non-Governmental Organisations to fully resolve them” the DG stated.
He explained further that “under this phase of the NISDP, thousands of Nigerian youths were trained nationwide in three trades namely: Tailoring, Cosmetology and Information and Communication Technology.
“Thousands of others were equally trained in other skills acquisition programmes including the Special Skills Development Programme (SSDP), the Federal Government Skills Empowerment Programme (FEGOSEP), the Info-Tech Skills Empowerment Programme (ISEP) and, the Agri-Preneurship Training Programme (ATP) amongst others.
Ari commended “State Governments, the Organised Private Sector (OPS), Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), corporate bodies and other well-meaning Nigerians that have been committing resources to empower vulnerable Nigerians with skills.
“It is my firm belief that only through such concerted efforts would the problems of poverty and unemployment be tackled.
“It is in this guise that I urge all stakeholders to continue to collaborate with us and take advantage of the Fund’s Expertise, Experience and Expansive network to empower Nigerians and resolve the problems that are steadily threatening our national unity and sovereignty as a Nation” he stated.
He said the mission and vision of the funds are not only remarkably pursuits but that infrastructure and Staff welfare have been upgraded.
He said all former DGs of the Fund had individually left remarkable land marks of policies and programmes that lead to its growth and development.
According to him, his administration had in 2016 unveiled the first phase of the ITF “reviewed vision: strategies for mandate actualisation.”
“Under the plan, new skills intervention programmes were introduced while existing programmes were expanded, leading to the training of over 500,000 Nigerians with cutting-edge technical skills in four years. The beneficiaries were all empowered with start-up packs for the first since establishment of the Fund.”
The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Ambassador Mariam Katagum, in her remarks, said the ITF being one of the key agencies of the government had accounted for many successes and achievements that the Ministry had made.
“It is in appreciation of its vital role that in 2018, the ITF was named as star partner for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Development in Nigeria and again recognises in 2019 with the award of excellence as outstanding MSMEs clinic partner,” she said.
In his remarks, the Plateau state governor, Simon Lalong, said the state had benefitted a lot from the Fund.
“The time for educational certificates is over. Only skills development can help take away Nigerians out economic problems , Integrity
Professionalism & Creativity
Efficiency & Effectiveness
Team Work .
Sir Joseph Ari was born on the 21st of December,1960. He is a holder of the West African School Certificate, Diploma in Broadcast Journalism, Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism and Post Graduate Diploma in Management. He also holds a degree in Law (LL B (Hons.), a Masters Degree in Law LLM, and Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA).
His working career spans a period of over two decades, covering different spheres of disciplines and human endeavour.
Sir Ari started broadcasting from the scratch at the Plateau Broadcasting Corporation as a News Reporter/Presenter; had a stint with the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria Lagos as a Newscaster and subsequently moved over to the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) as a News Editor/Caster. His working career took him to the National Insurance Corporation of Nigeria, (NICON) where he was the Public Relations Manager, North.
Sir Joseph Ari was also the Director of Press and Public Affairs to two Governors of Plateau State before his appointment as the Sole Administrator and later General Manager of the Plateau Publishing Company, (PPC) Jos. Thereafter, he was reassigned to the Plateau Radio Television Corporation, (PRTVC), as General Manager. To date, he remains the first Plateau citizen to have headed the two state media outfits at different times.
Sir Ari completed the cycle of his public service at the state level when he was appointed Permanent Secretary in charge of Government House Administration; a position he held until his appointment by the Federal Government as a Director in the Department of Public Relations,External Affairs and Publicity of the Industrial Training Fund, ITF, a grade ‘A’ Federal Government Parastatal under the aegis of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.
As the Director of Public Relations, he introduced the re-branding philosophy which saw members of staff re-oriented to provide quality service to Clients of the Fund.
The policy also engaged external stakeholders,thus paving the way for increased support and collaboration for smooth implementation of the ITF Act.
Sir Ari was also at different times the Director of Administration and Human Resource Department, Corporate Planning Department and the Director Business Training Development Department at the ITF Headquarters.
He is a member of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, a member of the Nigerian Institute of Management, member of the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria, APCON, a Fellow of the Corporate Administration Institute and a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, NIPR. Recently, he concluded two terms as a member of the Institute’s Governing Council.
He has attended various management and professional courses both within and outside the country. He has also bagged many awards of professional excellence from different Agencies, bodies and organisations.
A devout Christian, Sir Ari, is a Knight of the Catholic Church of the Order of St.Mulumba (KSM), where he has held positions as Chancellor and Grand Knight of the Order.His works of charity are numerous, but he prefers to engage in such activities quietly and with little publicity. Married to Lady Victoria Ari with five boys, his watch word is humility, while his motto is “This too shall pass away”’ drawn from a biblical verse.
