Nigeria’s dwindling income profile has prompted the federal authorities’s drive towards diversifying Nigeria from a mono-product financial system depending on fossil gas. Two main sectors – mining and strong minerals sector and the agricultural sector – maintain the candle for others on this quest for financial range and worth addition.

This truth just isn’t misplaced on the Federal Ministry of Mines Growth, which has initiated a number of programmes to create a sustainable worth chain that can create each wealth and jobs for Nigeria and Nigerians.

One such programme is the grasp gemstone and jewellery-making and design talent coaching of about 40 younger Nigerians chosen from throughout all of the states of the federation.

This programme was embarked by the federal authorities programme by means of the Ministry of Mines and Metal Growth, and facilitated by the Mineral Sector Help for Financial Diversification Undertaking (MinDiver), to attain sustainable improvement of the gemstone and jewelry business in Nigeria.

The grasp gemstone and jewellery-making and design coaching programme just lately held the commencement ceremony for the Batch 2 of the trainees on Thursday, October 13, 2022 on the Gemstone and Jewelry Centre Airport Highway, Abuja, throughout which 20 trainees had been handed out after a greater than six-months of coaching.

Talking on the event, the minister of state within the Ministry of Mines and Metal Growth (MMSD), Senator Gbemi Saraki, who represented her principal, Arc Olamilekan Adegbite, expressed pleasure on the profitable completion of the second batch of the Grasp Gemstone and Jewelry making and design coaching in Nigeria.

She congratulated the World Financial institution and the MinDiver Undertaking for the initiative and laudable endeavour.

Senator Saraki recalled that the strategic nationwide coaching programme on gemstone and jewelry manufacturing was flagged off by Minister Adegbite in November 2021 with first batch of 21 trainees from states throughout the nation.

In accordance with her, the talent coaching of the chosen youths in gemstone and jewelry manufacturing was envisaged to remodel Nigeria’s jewelry business.

She additional famous Nigeria, with its giant inhabitants, has a huge-insatiable urge for food for jewelry and that it’s crucial to create an area jewelry business that will considerably meet native demand for high quality jewelry merchandise, enhance import substitution, create jobs and increase the export worth of Nigeria’s gem stones and jewelry.

LEADERSHIP Sunday experiences that Nigeria is vastly blessed with a number of types of mineral assets, each strong and in any other case, together with types of valuable and semi-precious gem stones.

A number of the hottest Nigerian gem stones embody Sapphire, Aquamarine, Beryl, Emerald, Tourmaline, Ruby, Garnet, Amethyst and Zircon that are positioned throughout the nation.

The minister, nonetheless, lamented that a big amount of them are illegally exported overseas in uncooked kinds, stressing the necessity for worth addition in order that the nation can reap bountifully from its mineral assets.

“Everyone knows that the worth of a gemstone will increase when it’s reduce and polished, nonetheless, majority of gem stones mined in Nigeria are being exported with none worth addition for the reason that technical know-how and equipment required in reducing, sprucing and ending jewellery are typically missing within the nation.

“In consequence, the Nigerian financial system doesn’t profit financially from gemstone commerce and worth addition. The present contribution of the strong minerals sector to the nation’s general GDP is lower than 1% and experiences in 2019 revealed that gem stones price $3billion are exported yearly from Nigeria, largely unofficially, with low income returns. To bridge these gaps, it has change into mandatory to construct capability within the jewelry making and design,” she stated.

In accordance with her, it was to attain this goal that the Ministry drew up a roadmap for the event of Nigeria’s mineral assets, which the MinDiver Undertaking has been supporting the implementation as a part of its exercise of facilitating downstream sector improvement aimed toward enhancing value-addition to mineral merchandise.

Senator Saraki informed the beneficiaries what is predicted of them going ahead.

She stated: “By this intensive jewelry making coaching programme, authorities’s expectation is that you’ll make the sector proud, change into job creators and facilitate the expansion of small and medium scale enterprises within the jewelry business value-chain.

“Because the beneficiaries of this initiative, I encourage you to be motivated by the wide range of gem stones in Nigeria and use the talents and information you have got acquired to advance the business to the following degree.  Together with your acquired information from this coaching, it’s my perception that you’ll type the brand new military of jewellers who will create spectacular merchandise out of the mineral deposits in Nigeria with nice aesthetic for industrial worth and would have achieved the target of the event envisaged when this programme was conceived and designed.

“It’s our hope that, with this milestone achievement, you’ll put your coaching abilities into good use in order that within the nearest future, Nigerians wouldn’t be going overseas to purchase their jewelleries.

“I urge you to work very exhausting to attain the purpose and targets of the programme, because the business is flexible and has an ideal future in Nigeria.

She expressed perception that jewelry business when absolutely harnessed might contribute considerably to nationwide financial progress by creating large job alternatives alongside its worth chain.

“In the long term, we wish to remodel from giant shopper of overseas jewelry merchandise to prime quality native jewelry producers to save lots of the nation the massive overseas alternate expended on jewelry imports,” she stated.

Saraki introduced that in success of Minister Adegbite’s earlier assurance to the primary graduates of this programme,  the MMSD by means of the Mindiver Undertaking had concluded plans to assist the graduates of batch-1 and batch 2 with stater packs  encourage them to place their information to good use and make a distinction within the within the gemstone and jewelry eco-system.

Undertaking coordinator, MinDiver, Engr. Sallim Salaam, stated the thought behind the MinDiver Undertaking’s grasp coach programme  is  that beneficiaries would in flip practice up others within the commerce in order that the multiplier impact will probably be felt positively on the society.

Engr Sallaam informed the trainees: “Don’t dump your certificates in your cabinets however go forward and follow what you have got been taught. That’s the crux of the programme.”

He reiterated that the MinDiver Undertaking is fascinated with selling the gemstone and jewelry business in Nigeria to draw funding, create jobs and alleviate poverty.

Senior technical adviser, MinDiver, Mr Linus Adie, spoke in comparable vein: he stated the purpose of the federal authorities for this programme, can be realized when the individuals go forward to coach others and unfold the knowhow in gemstone and jewelry manufacturing.

Adie charged the beneficiaries to return to their states and search the assist of state governments to arrange.

Pauline Held, who represented the marketing consultant grasp trainers stated what the beneficiaries had obtained was a strategic step for the longer term. She requested all of the stakeholder to proceed to work collectively to allow them to obtain extra.

A gemstone fanatic, Mr Henry Ogbulogo, of the Federal Character Fee, in his speech, stated he was happy to search out that the nation’s federal character precept was employed in choosing the beneficiaries, including that Nigeria wants individuals with handiwork.

The consultant of the graduating class, Mr Suleiman Ahmed, thanked the minister and the MMSD for empowering them with the information and craft of jewelry making, including that at the long term the individuals, when they’re absolutely began, will earn overseas direct funding and increase the nation’s GDP.   He, nonetheless, made a request.

Ahmed: “As trainees, we want startup packs or grants, and so forth. ,. in order that we will take off. We applaud the instructors; they actually did the needful; they had been actually dedicated to impart this information to us.”

Mr Ahmed, who’s from Kano State, later informed LEADERSHIP Sunday that he was a gemologist earlier than the coaching however that he had learnt new issues.

“I’ve been into reducing, sprucing, testing and grading of valuable stones, however not into incorporating the stone into jeweleries, till this coaching.”

One other beneficiary of the coaching, Onyegba Chibugo from Abia State, who stated she was the final consumption of the second batch and skilled for less than 5 months, couldn’t management her pleasure when she spoke to LEADERSHIP Sunday.

“I’m so excited to be a part of this. I intend to go to Lagos for extra coaching to study brooch making and cufflinks.

Onyegba was notably elated that she was capable of personally produce the gadgets jewelry gadgets she showcased on her steady for the minister’s perusal.

On how far she intends to go along with her new abilities, she stated she had lastly discovered her profession.

“I intend to have a profession on this enterprise. I want to go overseas for additional coaching. One in all our grasp trainers informed us what we’ve simply finished is like preamble – that we have to search additional coaching to change into actually proficient in gemstone and jewelry making.”

She expressed her gratitude to the minister, the ministry and the lecturers and coordinators for this chance, including that they supplied every part the trainees wanted.

“The information they gave us right here is priceless. With this information I can get a mortgage and begin even from my home if I don’t have a store.  They’ve actually empowered us,” she concluded.

For one more beneficiary, Makanjuola Feyisayo, from Kwara State, she stated the coaching had lasted six and a half months, including that it had enabled her to supply quite a lot of jewelry merchandise, together with bracelets, rings, bangles, pendants, earrings, paper clips, wood rings, and so forth.

On how she felt being a part of the scheme, she enthused: “It’s a lifechanging alternative and I’m lucky to be concerned. It’s a information individuals journey overseas at nice expense to accumulate however they’ve introduced it right here to Nigeria.”

LEADERSHIP Sunday experiences that the second batch of trainees below the Grasp Coaching in Jewelry Making and Design, below the Federal Ministry of Mines and Metal Growth, supported by the World Financial institution-assisted MinDiver Undertaking, had been 20 in quantity whereas the primary batch had been 21, deliver the quantity to 41.