The Ondo state government has planned to commence Biometric Registration for Artisans operating in all 18 local government areas of the state.
The Commissioner for Commerce, Industry and Cooperative Services, Mrs Lola Fagbemi, stated this in Akure, the state capital.
Mrs Fagbemi, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mrs Funmilayo Akinola, did not disclose the exact time the registration exercise will commence and the cost implication for the artisans.
Mrs Akinola said, “Very soon [it will start], we are about to forward the memo to Mr governor.
“All artisans in the state must be registered with the ministry. In the course of the registration or after the registration, we will issue to you a certificate of registration which we expect the artisans to display at their shops, then they will be given ID cards.”
She said the state government would not leave any stone unturned in this era of insecurity, saying Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu is so passionate about the security of the lives and properties of the citizens.
She further disclosed that the government had directed every group, even the okada riders, to carry their Identity cards (ID) now.
“We want to know the people that are working in the state, either as organised private sector or as public servants, we want to know everybody so that it will be easy for us to flush out the bad ones.
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“All artisans are going to be given identity cards, and we will inform the chairman of the artisan’s group.
“We want every artisan to register when the time is set so that we can be captured online and get your data so that at the press of a button, we can get your identity and other information about you. That also will help the government to patronize artisans operating in the state.”
However, the federal government through the Director General of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, SMEDAN, Mr Olawale Fasanya, beseeched the state government to be friendly and considerate with the proposed plan.
He said retirees working as artisans should be left out of any financial implication for the registration.
“You have asked artisans to register with the state government and I hope it is free. If it is not free, I will beg you for the retirees, please make it free. Don’t let them pay. If the state government can do this for retirees, it will be better.
“In some other countries, retirees enter vehicles for free. They do a lot of things for free because it is assumed that at that age, they are not economically active.
“So I think we should also copy this kind of thing and see how we can encourage our people that are retired and still economically active.”
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