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From David Onwuchekwa, Nnewi
An NGO under the aegis of Aids for Women, Adolescents and Children International Organization (AWACIO) in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has empowered fifty-eight Anambra residents after graduating with various skills.
Chief Executive Officer of the organization, Dr Claudia Okeke disclosed this at Enugu-Ukwu in Njikoka Local Government Area, adding that the trainees, who acquired skills in pastry and decoration, tailoring, cosmetics and saloon, barbing, phone repair, commercial grinding and tiling, were drawn from seven communities in Anambra.
She said that AWACIO picked trainees in Anambra Central Senatorial district which comprises Anaocha, Awka North, Awka South, Dunukofia, Njikoka, Idemili North and Idemili South Council Areas.
Okeke said that the whole idea of the programme was to fight poverty and joblessness while empowering the youth to be self-reliant and to become employers of labour as well.
“This year 2023, AWACIO embarked on the journey to bring a skill acquisition programme to Anambra State particularly, Anambra Central. Over eighty interested men, women and youth were gathered.
“Based on our eligibility criteria, the number was reduced to seventy. Following our preliminary training and investigation, the number was further reduced to fifty-eight for a total of seven different skills.
“The fifty-eight consists of fifty active trainees and eight standby trainees who have been vigorously trained in one of the skills for six weeks. Trainees in a skill like tailoring will proceed for an even longer period.
“The skills presented for graduation are pastry and decoration, tailoring, cosmetics and saloon, barbing, phone repair, commercial grinding and tiling,” she said.
Okeke disclosed that beneficiaries were presented with certificates and starter kits which included barbing kits, cosmetic kits, sewing machines and bakery ovens.
Other items were tiling gears, commercial grinders and phone repair gears to enable them to forge ahead in society with their newly acquired skills.
According to her, AWACIO would monitor the progress of all the graduates to ensure they utilize their skills to create an economic impact within and outside Anambra State.
“We foresee a shift in economic power as each trainee begins to make a difference, and is able to train others, spread the wealth, and alleviate poverty,” she added.
She further disclosed that AWACIO was aimed to be a national body and had been registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in January 2011.
Okeke said that the body engaged in aids, projects and programmes that were beneficial to women, adolescents and children.
She noted that its mission was to advance the hope of women, youths, and adolescents to a better livelihood through educational activities, empowerment and capacity-building programmes, good economic sustaining opportunities, disease prevention and more.
She said that AWACIO attained its goal by partnering with organizations, communities, and individuals to conduct skill acquisition training, health workshop acquisition and other educational events in communities.
“AWACIO has conducted a series of empowerment activities since 2013 such as empowerment of widows with total energies in Bwari 2013, youth with total upstream in Kwali 2014, empowerment programmes in Gwagwalada, Abuja, Niger State, Gombe among others, “she said.
Anambra State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Ms Chiamaka Nnake commended AWACIO for taking off fifty unemployed youths in the State through training and empowering them to start their chosen skills learning.
Nnake said that the empowerment done by AWACIO was in line with Governor Charles Soludo’s mandate to reduce unemployment and produce a labour force that could be productive and marketable anywhere.
Deputy Director (Planning) in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Mrs Chioma Ezechukwu, represented the Commissioner. She urged the leader of the NGO to partner more with the State.
Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Anambra Broadcasting Station, Chief Chido Obidiegwu, urged the beneficiaries of the programme not to take the efforts for granted.
He advised earners of the programme to ensure they better their lives through the skills they have learnt since they have been empowered to handle their economic needs.
Obidiegwu was represented by the Acting Director of News and Current Affairs in the State broadcasting station, Mrs Judy Nwabueze.
She said that the group had acted in line with the think-home philosophy of the Anambra government and urged other wealthy people from the State to emulate Okeke’s footprint.
A trainer on phone repairs, Mr Chinaecherem Igbonau said he trained four persons and was happy to see them receive a starter pack to commence immediately.
“I am happy that I was given an opportunity to share my skill acquisition by imparting the knowledge to some other people.
“I assured the team that I will monitor the boys as they start work so that my effort will not be in vain,” he said.
A field worker for the team, Mrs Chinyere Okeke said that the people who graduated put in a lot of interest and commitment in their period of training, saying that it had paid off for them.
She said that AWACIO should not relent in the good job it had started as it would, she said, reduce the zeal to leave the rural community to urban cities knowing that help could locate them down in the village.
Earlier, the traditional ruler of the Enugwu-Ukwu community, Igwe Ralph Ekpeh, represented by the village Chairman, Mr Fabian Akpagu, thanked AWACIO for initiating the project, which according to him, would uplift the community, and urged them to sustain the tempo.
