The Federal Government has distributed tablets to 70 digital media managers as part of a strategy to broaden grassroots awareness of its vocational and entrepreneurship empowerment programmes.
The initiative, unveiled by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education (OSSAP-TVEE), aims to tighten the link between government interventions and the communities they are meant to serve.
Dr. Abiola Arogundade, the presidential aide on technical, vocational and entrepreneurship education, said the handover was designed to give media practitioners first-hand knowledge of flagship schemes such as the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS) and to strengthen their capacity to connect potential beneficiaries with available opportunities.
She described the move as deliberate, arguing that media operators are essential to ensuring that government programmes reach young Nigerians, artisans and small entrepreneurs beyond the federal capital.
“Without you, even if we go to these places, nobody will know,” Arogundade told the recipients.
“We want everybody to know what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is doing, not just here in Abuja, but in all states”, she added.
The presidential aide framed the tablets as productivity tools rather than gifts, noting that millions of skilled Nigerians remain locked out of the digital economy for lack of appropriate devices.
“A phone or laptop is a tool to find new customers and turn training into certification,” she said.
“Without it, even the most capable people are locked out of the world,” the aide said.
She added that the federal government is moving digital devices and skills training into states across the country to expand participation in the vocational and digital economy.
Recipients were urged to deploy the tablets to amplify information about government programmes and to help identify and link beneficiaries to opportunities in real time.
The event also served as a launchpad for the next stage of the NPRGS outreach, with Dr. Arogundade calling for robust media coverage of the Oyo State phase scheduled for September 28–October 9, 2026.
The Oyo training, part of a wider expansion across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, is expected to benefit 200 youths in graphics and artificial-intelligence design, makeup, and fashion designing.
According to government statements, the NPRGS, implemented through OSSAP-TVEE, aims to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within a decade by equipping youths with marketable skills, reducing unemployment and underemployment, and promoting entrepreneurship and self-reliance.
