The Industrial Training Fund, ITF, is set to train a over 200,000 artisans in another round of its
Skill-Up Artisans, SUPA, programme, the Director-General and Chief Executive, Dr. Afiz Oluwatoyin Ogun, has disclosed.
Ogun stated this on Thursday in Jos while addressing staff and stakeholders at the celebration of the 55th anniversary of the Fund and his third year in office as the Director-General.
He said hundreds of thousands of artisans had already been trained under the first three phases of SUPA, while more than 7,000 artisans had undergone international certification examinations.
According to him, the programme is designed to train, retrain, standardise, certify and professionalise artisanal practice in Nigeria.
He said, “In the first three phases, SUPA has trained hundreds of thousands of artisans, with another 200,000 targeted for training in 2026.”
Ogun said the Fund had also moved away from the traditional starter-pack model by introducing three sustainable exit pathways , Talent Export, Industry Placement and Business Incubation , to provide beneficiaries with opportunities for employment, entrepreneurship and economic empowerment.
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He said the Fund had collaborated with institutions including Alberk QA Technic of Turkey, City & Guilds of the United Kingdom, ASQ Solutions UK, Japan’s METI and AOTS.
Ogun said the ITF had also become one of only seven approved City & Guilds examination centres in Nigeria
He said his administration had, in the last three years, pursued a deliberate transformation agenda aimed at repositioning the ITF as a leading institution for skills development, workforce enhancement and national economic growth.
He said critical operations, including SIWES management, reimbursement processing, document archiving, staff attendance management and SUPA administration, had been digitised to improve efficiency, transparency and accountability.
Ogun said the Fund had also strengthened its quality assurance framework through the recertification of its ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System and adoption of the ISO 17024 Certification of Persons framework.
He disclosed that customer satisfaction ratings had risen above 90 per cent following the introduction of customer-focused service delivery systems.
On infrastructure, the DG said his administration had completed several projects, including the renovation of the main office complex, Corpers Lodge and Modern Skills Academy in Jos, as well as a fuel station at the ITF headquarters.
