Aztech Arcum Event Centre on Ken Saro-Wiwa Road, Port Harcourt in Rivers State hosted eminent personalities on February 3. That day 100 new stars were unleashed on the Niger Delta. The event was the 6th graduation of 100 beneficiaries of the Empowerment Support Initiative (ESI)/Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Entrepreneurial and Skills’ Acquisition.
The Non-Governmental Organisation, NGO (ESI), which was started on October 16, 2008, has as President/Founder, Dame Judith Amaechi, who is the wife of the Transportation Minister, Rotimi Amaechi, a former governor of Rivers state.
The 100 beneficiaries, who had colourful procession into the venue in coveralls and protective helmets, later changed into academic gowns, to the admiration of their parents, guardians, other family members, friends and well-wishers, with the legendary and award-winning gospel artiste, Frank Edwards, and others entertaining the guests.
The intensive training for four weeks by mostly foreigners, made the beneficiaries to become specialists in screeding, carpentry, plumbing, Plaster Of Paris (POP) ceiling installation, floor tiling, electrical wiring and decoration.
During the graduation, each of the beneficiaries received N150,000 as business investment capital support and starter pack, to start them off in the right direction, as well as presenting all of them with certificates of participation.
Chairman of the Central Planning Committee (CPC) of the graduation, Dame Maureen Tamuno, in her welcome address, insisted that the NGO had done well in the last ten years.
Tamuno stressed that the founder of ESI (Dame Judith) had positively been impacting the lives of many women, youths and children in the Niger Delta and beyond.
The Chairman, Board of Trustees of ESI, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, who is also the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), in his address, stated that giving youths hand-outs would not be sustainable, while pointing out that giving the young ones qualitative education and skills would ensure a brighter future.
Peterside said: “We at ESI are arming our people with skills that are sustainable and that will make them to employ more persons, while some politicians are arming the youths with guns and giving them hand-outs, which should be discouraged.”
Chairman of the ESI’s board of trustees also assured that the NGO would continue to make Niger Deltans and other Nigerians proud.
The guest speaker, Sanjeev Ohri, who is the Chief Officer, Business Development, Dudley Worldwide, United Kingdom, stated that his institution/organisation was proud of the partnership with ESI, to empower the youths.
Another guest speaker, Kunle Awobodu, who is the First Vice President of the Nigeria Institute of Building, noted that efforts must always be made to address the skills’ gap in Nigeria, through empowerment of the youths.
Awobodu pointed out that there is future in Nigeria, in terms of skills’ acquisition, while lauding ESI for its activities and efforts.
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, stated that equipping the youths, women and children to survive in the 21st century had been the passion of Amaechi’s wife, who was described as a prayerful and supportive woman.
Lulu-Briggs maintained that Dame Judith, as Rivers First Lady, was a delight, while referring to the founder of ESI as an amazing woman, who should always be celebrated worldwide.
The representative of Rivers East Senatorial District, Senator Andrew Uchendu, stated that Dame Judith had done well with her NGO, stressing that the energies of the youths must be harnessed for productive purposes, with a solid foundation laid for the young ones, which he said ESI was addressing.
Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Pastor Usani Usani noted that ESI had got the best in global standard, while the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, admonished the beneficiaries, drawn from the nine states of the Niger Delta, to effectively utilise the opportunities.
The graduation, which had as theme: “Home Finishing Skills, a Pathway to Empowerment and Sustainable Livelihood.” was also attended by the Deputy National Secretary of the APC, Chief Victor Giadom; a former Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), Dame Aleruchi Cookey-Gam; the Chief Medical Director of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), Prof.Henry Ugboma; and a former member of the House of Representatives, Dr. Dawari George; among others.
The founder of ESI, in her address, solicited the support of all stakeholders, especially with ESI engaging mostly foreign trainers, stressing that sustainability was key, if the back of the scourge of endemic poverty must be broken.
Former Rivers First Lady said: “The training was kicked off on January 10, 2018. ESI is proud to collaborate with Her Excellency, Hajia Aisha Buhari’s Future Assured Initiative, which is very actively advocating the health and well-being of women, children and other vulnerable groups, through community mobilisation and health promotion.
“For the modest successes we have jointly achieved at ESI, more of which we will, hopefully, attain in the future, I humbly give thanks and all the glory to God Almighty, who has made everything possible.
“For over a decade, ESI has aggressively engaged in many children, women and youth educational and vocational activities, including capacity building, both on the national and international stages.
“The mission of ESI is to tackle endemic poverty head on, develop a skill force that enables our citizens to be employable and self-employed, thereby reversing youth unemployment, eliminate social vices and temper restiveness in our region (Niger Delta) and country by empowering and securing opportunities for the sustainable of livelihood of our youths and women.”
Mrs Amaechi also revealed that ESI’s flagship was the entrepreneurial development and skills’ acquisition programme, which she said was conceived at a time when the skills gap in the Niger Delta was a daunting challenge, but recognised that the region’s potential for sustainable inter-personal growth was severely stunted.
Dame Judith noted that since 2008, when ESI started, it had provided various training programmes in vocational skills and entrepreneurial development, including capacity building to over 3,000 beneficiaries in Nigeria.
The president of ESI disclosed that the NGO was making efforts to evolve a culture of self-employability in Nigeria, thereby focusing on entrepreneurial, vocational and leadership value enhancement, described as a key to finally and completely unlock the potential and myriad of possibilities open to the people, in a pragmatically achievable and sustainable manner.
The Managing Director of NDDC, Mr. Nsima Ekere, described the graduation as a great milestone to transform the Niger Delta, stressing that NDDC was re-writing the history of the Niger Delta through massive infrastructural development and empowerment of the people.
He noted that the partnership between NDDC and ESI showed what could be achieved, while working together, with the energies of the youths to be directed to productive ventures.
Ekere disclosed that between 2003 and 2017, NDDC trained and built the capacity of 22,612 youths and women of the Niger Delta in vocational skills, while revealing that training of 5,000 more youths of the region, rich in crude oil and gas, was being processed and would commence as soon as the commission’s budget was approved.
NDDC’s managing director said: “Nine thousand applicants showed interest in the ESI/NDDC Entrepreneurial and Skills’ Acquisition programme, but only 100 were selected to participate,” adding that the mandate of the Federal Government’s interventionist agency went beyond physical infrastructure.
Ekere also lauded President Buhari for his commitment and attention to Niger Delta matters, putting Nigeria on the path of sustainable development, while making the Niger Delta and other parts of Nigeria better places for all.
Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed stated that Nigerians are extremely resourceful and creative, stressing that all citizens have roles to play, in order to ensure a better Nigeria.
Mohammed urged the ESI’s graduands to take advantage of the life-changing opportunities, not only to ensure better life for themselves and their families, but to endeavour to employ others.
He noted that the ESI was complementing the efforts of the government to empower Nigerians, particularly the youths, women and children.
The information minister said: “Jobs are not created only when you advertise, neither are jobs created when it is white collar jobs. Before this government came in, the nation had 5 million of rice growers. Today, we have 12.2 million rice growers.
“So, that is an extra of more than 7 million jobs in the agric sector alone. This is not fiction, but facts and this was corroborated by the chairman of the Rice Growers Association a few days ago. Not only government creates jobs. Every individual and NGO should help to create new jobs.
“200,000 jobs have been created directly by the N-Power programme. Another 12,000 jobs will be created in the second phase and the Government Inter-Temporary and Empowerment Programme has created another 500,000 direct and indirect jobs.
“Through the school feeding programme; government has created 61,000 new jobs, just for schools. So, job creation is not just the job of government alone. We are to provide the enabling environment through programmes and activities.”
The information minister also stated that the ESI was a well-thought-out and beautiful initiative, having tallied with what government had started doing.
The wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, Hajia Aisha, disclosed that she was proud of the founder of ESI, in view of her laudable works through the NGO.
The President’s wife, who was represented by the wife of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mrs. Gimbiya Yakubu-Dogara, urged Nigerian youths, especially those of the Niger Delta, to remain focused and to continually contribute to societal development.
Dogara’s wife said: “The wife of the President is proud of you (Dame Judith) for all the laudable works you are doing. I want to thank the Minister of Transportation (Amaechi) for giving Dame Judith the opportunity to realise her dream. Madam, you had a dream and you pursued it, you followed it and it has come to fruition. All Nigerian women are proud of you.
“To the celebrants (graduands), you have been given an opportunity to be what you are. You had a vision and this woman (Dame Judith) has given you everything she can give you. You have to talk to yourselves, encourage yourselves, push forward and keep moving, you will be what you desire to be. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. This is the right step to achieving your goal.
“The challenge is that people will castigate you, close your ears and continue to move, you will achieve. I beg of you that Dame Judith’s efforts must not be in vain. It is in your hands to push it and to continue to move forward. That people will see and say of a truth, you have given this woman a reason to smile.
“I want to thank the NDDC for believing in this woman (Dame Judith) and for giving her the opportunity to be what she wants to be. I call on other women and other philanthropists to support and give her everything that she needs to move forward.
“If her husband had not pushed her, if he had not talked to her and encouraged her, she will not be what she is today. We are very proud of you (Dame Judith). To whom much is given, much is required. The people of Rivers State and other Niger Deltans are very proud of you for supporting her (Dame Judith)”
The spokesman of the beneficiaries, Nwonodi Wosu, while showing appreciation to ESI, NDDC and others, stated that the 100 graduands were glad with the capacity building and acquisition of skills, reiterating that the future of Niger Delta and Nigeria lied in the youths.
Wosu, who disclosed that the beneficiaries had rigorous training for four weeks, lauded the president of ESI and NDDC for believing in them, for the support and opportunities given to them, while assuring that they would not abuse the privilege.
