Anambra pledges to sustain youth empowerment programmes

ANAMBRA State Government has assured of its commitment to sustaining various youth empowerment intervention programmes as veritable means of fighting poverty and restiveness in the state.

  The state Commissioner for Youth Empowerment and Creative Economy, Prof. Theresa Obiekezie, said this while receiving the Executive Committee Members of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Njikoka Local Government Area Chapter, during a courtesy call at her office.

  She said the government had initiated various youth development programmes aimed at equipping them with the skills to drive them into economic sustainability and entrepreneurship.

  While saying that her ministry had carried out some skills acquisition programmes in partnership with agencies, she decried an apparent apathy by the youths on issues of skills acquisition in preference to white collar jobs.

  The commissioner told the delegation that the government would always provide the needed enabling environment to the youths to explore and maximise their potential so as to add value to society.

  She, then, praised the organisation for embarking on various career development activities in their locality in partnership with the private sector, urging them not to relent.

  While reminiscing on her exploits as the winner of African Union Awards for young scientists and other laurels, she reminded all of the numerous benefits derivable from hard work, commitment and dedication in every field of endeavour.

  Earlier, the Coordinator of NYCN, Njikoka LGA Chapter, Mr Godwin Okoye, hailed the commissioner for initiating life-changing programmes that had positively impacted lives of the youths in the state.

  He added that the visit was to show solidarity with the manner that she had been piloting the affairs of the ministry and to officially present the new executive committee to her after their recent election.

  Okoye listed areas of intervention by the new executive committee to include quiz competitions among schools, drug free campaigns and a proposal to carry out voter-education and other forms of enlightenment.