Cross River First Lady Calls For Technical, Digital Youth Empowerment

At the ceremony marking the grand opening of the Tech Skills Training Programme, TSTP, organized by Women Action for Positive Development and Gender Enhancement Center, WAPDAGEC with support from the Innocent Chukwuemeka Empowerment Foundation ICCEF, the wife of the Governor of Cross River State, Bishop (Mrs.) Eyoanwan Bassey Otu, represented by Dr. Grace Oko, called for enhanced technical and digital training for boys and girls for a more assured future.
The event which held at the Cross River State University March 17, is part of the broader TSTP initiative, which seeks to provide young individuals with technical skills and opportunities for personal and professional growth.
Dr. Oko, who commended the initiative, acknowledged the significance of providing young individuals with the tools to acquire essential technical skills. She emphasized the importance of the training programme as a vital aspect of the overall empowerment vision supported by Her Excellency.
Dr. Oko praised the relevance of the training, particularly its alignment with the state’s first lady’s STEM initiative. She stressed that this initiative is not exclusively targeted at empowering the girl child but also to include both genders for the overall betterment of society.
According to Dr. Oko, the initiative is a commitment to fostering a more equitable and productive society where both young men and women are given the opportunity to excel in technical and scientific fields.
She further stated that focusing solely on empowering the girl-child without addressing the boy-child would undermine the overall goal of societal progress. Dr. Oko argued that an unbalanced approach could lead to a situation where the trained girl child ends up being overshadowed by an untrained boy child, which could ultimately lead to a societal imbalance and hinder collective development. She underscored the necessity of fostering both genders to ensure that the future is shaped by educated and skilled individuals who can contribute meaningfully to society.
Dr. Oko officially declared the training session open and encouraged all the trainees to give it their best efforts, reminding them that, it is a unique opportunity to learn, grow, and develop skills that would be beneficial not only to themselves, but also to their communities and the nation as a whole.
The session marks an important step in WAPDAGEC’s commitment to fostering technical skills and shaping the leaders of tomorrow. Through this initiative, the support from Innocent Chukwuemeka Empowerment Foundation continues to play a vital role in the empowerment of the next generation, equipping them with the skills necessary to thrive in an ever-evolving world.