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The Lord Mayor of Okija, High Chief Christian Ezinwaputaife Okonkwo, has taken a major step towards strengthening education and youth development in Okija by accepting to support the Education or Nothing Initiative for Okija indigenes.
The intervention will directly target 150 beneficiaries, with 100 children receiving support to return to school and 50 youths receiving skills training and empowerment.
The initiative was convened by Dr. Frank Igbojindu, GMD, Akpoazaa Group, as a national platform designed to support young people through both formal and informal education.
The decision of the Lord Mayor to sponsor the programme for Okija has brought a new dimension to community-based support for education.
High Chief Christian Ezinwaputaife Okonkwo, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of C-Energy Oil, is expected to provide the support required for the implementation of the programme among eligible beneficiaries from Okija.
The intervention is coming at a time when the cost of education and the difficulty of accessing meaningful employment and vocational opportunities continue to affect many young Nigerians.
The programme seeks to address both challenges by providing educational support to children while equipping youths with practical skills.
Dr. Frank Igbojindu, Convener of the initiative, expressed his appreciation to the Lord Mayor for accepting to support the programme.
He said the gesture demonstrates a strong commitment to the development of Okija’s human capital.
According to him, the initiative was built around a simple conviction: every young person deserves an opportunity to develop his or her potential.
He noted that while formal education remains critical, young people who do not follow the conventional academic route should not be left behind.
The skills component of the programme is therefore intended to provide alternative pathways through vocational, technical, digital and entrepreneurial training.
The programme will also emphasize empowerment after training, with the objective of helping beneficiaries translate acquired skills into productive activities.
The selection process is expected to be transparent, with applications subjected to screening and verification before final beneficiaries are selected.
The organizers also plan to monitor the beneficiaries to ensure accountability and determine the impact of the intervention.
The Lord Mayor’s support is significant beyond the immediate beneficiaries.
The Education or Nothing Initiative is national in scope and is designed to allow leaders and philanthropists from different communities to adopt the programme for their own people.
Thus, the Okija intervention could become a model for similar community-based sponsorships across the country.
Dr. Igbojindu called on other leaders, business owners, organizations and philanthropists to emulate the Lord Mayor’s example and invest in education and skills development.
He said that communities should see investment in young people as an essential component of development.
He again expressed his appreciation to High Chief Christian Ezinwaputaife Okonkwo for embracing the initiative and for demonstrating his commitment to the educational future of Okija’s younger generation.
The initiative is expected to commence with beneficiary identification, screening, verification and subsequent enrollment into schools and approved training programmes.
For the beneficiaries, the programme represents an opportunity.
For Okija, it represents an investment.
And for the Lord Mayor, it represents a chance to create a legacy through the lives of young people.
Education or Nothing — a bold step to secure the future of Okija.
