The National Agency for the Control of Aids (NACA) has organised skills acquisition training for People Living with HIV (PLWHIV) and indegent people in Nasarawa State.
Mr Mohammed Abdullahi, NACA representative while flagging off the exercise on Thursday in Lafia, said that the five-day skills acquisition training in the areas of confectionery, barbing, hair styling and make-up aimed at empowering them to be self-reliant.
Abdullahi said that the skills acquisition training was facilitated by Mr Abubakar Dahiru, Member House of Representatives, representing Lafia and Obi Constituency and the Chairman, Committee on HIV and AIDS and Leprosy control.
According to Abdullahi, the goal of the intervention is to economically empower the 155 indigent young people, especially women and girls living with HIV and vulnerable people for HIV and AIDS risk mitigation.
“Poverty and gender inequality have been identified as key drivers that predispose people, especially young women and girls to the risk of HIV and AIDS epidemics in Nigeria.
“The newly developed National HIV and AIDS Community Care and Support Guidelines has identified economic empowerment as one of the critical strategies to mitigate the risk of HIV virus, especially among young people,” he said.
Abdullahi noted that selection of the beneficiaries cut across PLWHIV and other vulnerable people of Lafia and Obi constituency.
Mr Mohammed Ahmed, the coordinator of programme, said that it was aimed at developing participants to be self-reliant to improve their socio economic status.
Ahmed said that beneficiaries were carefully selected from across two local government areas, Lafia and Obi that make up the constituency of the member of House of Representatives, adding that they would be given starter packs at the end of the training.(NAN)
