No fewer than16, 622 youths in Cross River have benefited from the World Bank-assisted N109 billion Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operation (YESSO) programme in the state.
Mr Balinwo Ofegobi, State Coordinator, YESSO, a Federal Government poverty reduction programme, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Calabar on Sunday.
Ofegobi said that the beneficiaries were chosen from 53, 467 poor and vulnerable households in the state.
He said that the programme was being financed through the International Development Association (IDA) in eight states: Anambra, Bauchi, Cross River, Ekiti, Kwara, Kogi, Osun, and Oyo.
He said: “it is a partnership operation between the federal government of Nigeria, the World Bank and eight states of the federation in this first phase.
“This support operation is in line with the commitment of the federal government to poverty reduction.
The state coordinator said the programme aimed at providing the poor the opportunity of becoming self-reliant and obtaining social services.
He said six Local Governments in Cross River – Yala, Bekwara, Etung, Biase, Obubra and Calabar Municipality – were mandated to produce registers of the poor and vulnerable households in the areas.
Ofegobi said that YESSO used community leaders, traditional institutions and youth groups in the communities in identifying the poor and vulnerable households in the areas.
The coordinator said that the beneficiaries aged between 18 and 35 and were unemployed, unskilled, uneducated or had a minimum educational qualification of JSS 111.
“They are given orientation and periodic life training and deployed to public works in the state and around the villages they reside.
“Some of the areas where they are engaged include traffic control, refuse collection, general sanitation, minor erosion control and tree nursery,” he said.
He said that the beneficiaries worked for at least 15 days a month and were paid a monthly stipend based on their level of participation and discharge of assigned duties.