By Beatrice Gondyi
Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi state has presented certificates of training to 204 youths who were trained on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Agriculture by the North-east Development Commission (NEDC).

The presentation of the certificates to the trainees which was held at the Government House Banquet Hall is the 2nd batch NEDC ICT training programme/handing over of agricultural machinery/inputs. Those trained were given a starter pack and the sum of 20,000 Naira.

Governor Bala Mohammed, while presenting the certificates explained that the NEDC has been thorough in the area of ICT training, provision of agricultural machinery and inputs, stressing that the two sectors are driven by the youths who suffer from the problem of unemployment, which has led a lot of them to restiveness and social vices.

Governor Mohammed who was represented by his Deputy, Senator Baba Tela, noted that the intervention will serve as a catalyst for mitigating youth employment and boost entrepreneurship, thereby making the youths productive and responsible citizens of the state.

“This graduation ceremony is an epoch-making event as the participants have received requisite training and technical know-how in the area of information, communication and technology, which according to the National Bureau for Statistics is one of the major contributors to the gross domestic Production of the nation”

“As you are aware, agriculture is the mainstay of our economy as it serves as a veritable source of employment to over 60 to 70 per cent of our labour force. However, the sector for some time has been battling with insufficient machinery and inputs, thereby hindering the growth of mechanized agriculture in the state and the country”

He said in order to reverse the ugly trend, priority has been given to the agricultural sector by the present administration and the management of the NEDC just as he commended the efforts of the NEDC for complementing the efforts of the state government for providing the state with agricultural machinery and farm inputs that will boost agriculture in the state.

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Speaking earlier, the Managing Director of the NEDC, Mohammed Alkali, said that the commission earlier graduated on the 9th of February 2021, 176 youths who were trained on I.C.T, adding that the North-east region has the lowest literacy rate and the highest poverty indices among all the geopolitical zones of the country due to the activities of insurgents, which has necessitated the need for human capital development in the North-east zone.

While congratulating the graduates, he urged them to utilize what was learnt during the training by becoming good ambassadors of the state, adding that the total number of graduate youths of Batch A and Batch B is now 380.

He said that the objective of the NEDC ICT programme is to improve access to Information Technology resources, within the North-East zone and empower the population with necessary vocational education, skills and tools that can make them self-reliant.