Kunle Adelabu
One of the success stories from the various skill acquisition centres established by the Lagos State Government, across the state, has stated that the opportunity and skill that she acquired at the Etunrenren Vocational Skill Acquisition Centre in Ikorodu, has made her independent as a fashion designer.
Mrs Adenekan Arinola, a graduate of fashion designing from the centre, now manages her own fashion shop at Solomade, where she makes herself productive and provides services to her customers.
She spoke with THE IMPACT, at her shop after participating in the sensitisation exercise organised by the centre at Solomade, lkorodu, alongside the Head of Etunrenren Vocational Skill Acquisition Centre and other instructors.
“My husband encouraged me to enroll at the Etunrenren Vocational Centre instead of sitting down at home doing nothing, and I enrolled at the centre in January 2022, for a 9 – month fashion training”, she said.
“The centre was okay, and I was taught necessary things that I needed. It was at the place that I learnt how to use tape rule, take measurement, and sew clothes. These are things that I knew nothing about before going there.
“My instructors are very good and nice people. We were taught what we needed to know about fashion.
“After my graduation, I started this fashion designing shop because I don’t want to be sitting down at home. I started this last month, to put into practice what I have learnt”, Mrs Adenekan said.
While charging the government to assist graduands with loans as start-ups and to further their businesses, the fashion designer charged out of school students and others sitting at home and doing nothing, to enroll at the centre to acquire skills and be independent.
“Capital has been a major challenge. I need it to get more materials to sew clothes for my customers like these clothes I sew (pointing at three different clothes hung in her shop, and equipment to operate with”, she said.
“My message for those sitting down at home doing nothing, is that they should go to the centre to enroll and learn one skill or the other, because if they learn, they will not be dependent on their husband to buy everything or their sisters or family members”, she charged.
“Government should assist graduates from the vocational centre, with loan to start business in the area that they were be trained at”.
Mrs Adenekan also said that she will be willing to visit her former vocational centre to mentor trainees with her success story.
Meanwhile, Mrs Olaide Oladunjoye, a Deputy Director of Education, Agency for Mass Education, Lagos State, and Head, Etunrenren Vocational Training Centre, Ikorodu, has described Mrs Adenekan as one of the many success stories of students that have been trained at the centre.
She also informed our reporter that the Agency for Mass Education, which is managing the vocational centres, introduced entrepreneurship education that must be taken by all the trainees before graduation. This, she said, was designed to prepare them for the business world.
Mrs Oladunjoye also said that the agency is in partnership with the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund, to provide capital for the graduates and assist them in starting their own businesses.
The Head of the Etunrenren Vocational Centre, said that the opportunity which other graduates have been taking advantage of, is also available to Mrs Adenegan, the fashion designer who is in need of capital.
“If I begin to tell you that our story has been that of success, success and success, it will be as if we are trying to blow our own trumpets, but the reality is that our story has been a case of success all the way. We were actually located in Igbo – Oluwo, in a rented hall, but since government has put in a government building (within the Etunrenren Primary School), it has been wonderful. The story has been success all the way. We have trained people to the extent that some of them have gone outside the shore of the country and doing us proud”, she said.
“We have trained people who are working in five – star hotels. We can beat our chest to say that what we are doing at the centre is of international standard. Our trainees will fit into anywhere in the world and they are already doing that. What more can we say?”, she asked rhetorically.
