Niger Delta

Bayelsa Recommits To Capacity Building Through Skills Acquisition

Published

4 years ago

February 11, 2022

The Bayelsa State Government has restated its desire towards capacity building for youths of the state.
The state Governor, Senator Douye Diri, who gave the indication of the state’s readiness to partner institutions in its entrepreneurial development during the week at the foundation laying ceremony of the Diri Industrial-skills and Entrepreneurial Training Scheme(DIETS), in Yenagoa,the state capital also restated the importance of technical manpower in development.
He said the skills training centre which was a private-sector funded project has now been taken over by the state government,noting that it would be ready in no distant time for the entrepreneurial skills training for youths of the state, describing it as an economic booster for the state by way of direct and indirect employment opportunities after the graduation of participants in the programme.
The Tide reports that Governor Diri Industrial-Skills and Entrepreneurial Training Scheme(DIETS) is a skills acquisition programme the Bayelsa State government is carrying out in partnership with a firm, the ‘AfricanTide Association’ and Fern University in Hagen, Germany, as well as others.
“Let me start by prefexing my remarks by alluding to the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the acronym ‘DIETS’.
“A healthy diet protects against malnutrition in all it’s forms as well as in non-communicable diseases, such as heart disease, stroke and cancer. An unhealthy diet on the other hand is lack of physical activity and leading to global risk of health.
“When the Commissioner for Labour, Employment generation and Productivity first approached me about this project with the acronym ‘DIETS’ I couldn’t help but to laugh.I find it a happy irony that our presence here today is to lay the foundation for the appropriately titled, Diri Industrial-Skills and Entrepreneurial Training Scheme (DIETS).
“The unavailability of white collar jobs and the attendant frustration it can produce is the leading cause of many social ills in our society today, particularly among our youths and impressionable population. DIETS, as we’ve heard from the Commissioner and the President of the AfricanTide Association,Dr Rosalyn Dressman will be responsible for bringing out best in our youths and in lifting out many from the doldrums of poverty and unemployment.It would create windows of opportunities for our youths to become self-sustaining, professionals and free up the congested labour market and the illusion for seeking non-existence jobs”, Governor Diri said.
In his opening remarks, the state Commissioner for Labour, Employment generation and Productivity, Mr Stanley Braboke commended Governor Diri for his vision and foresight in ensuring that the state’s teaming youths and women were trained in gainful skills for their self development, saying these trainees would in turn impact the economy of the state.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after the event, Braboke said the training centre has the capacity to enable trainees practise their professions at the end of their training programmes.
He commended the AfricanTide Association and Fern University for the partnership, expressing delight that his ministry and others involved in the project would deliver the project as and when due for the continuous empowerment of youths and interested women of the state in various skills needed for the 21st century labour market.
“Government doesn’t have jobs to give to everybody, so with this centre, government would train entrepreneurs with the various skills needed in the 21st century labour market.
“And it’s not just about the jobs,but about practice. This centre would enable participants to practice their jobs after their graduation. Though there’s paucity of fund,God willing, we intend to complete this building in six months time. Hopefully, it would be commissioned when would be marking three years in office”, the Commissioner said.
Also speaking,the president of the AfricanTide association and Diaspora focal person,Dr Rosalyn Dressman thanked the state government for the partnership.
She noted that the building of the centre by the government was a commitment that the Diri’s -led administration is willing to give the appropriately needed skills to Bayelsans to fit into the global labour market, describing the training centre as a ‘Smart building’ with modern ICT gadgets.

Niger Delta

Stakeholders In Delta Seek Stronger GBV Action, Women’s Leadership

Published

3 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

Stakeholders in Delta State convened in Asaba for a leadership workshop organised by Otdel Health Heritage and Environmental Initiative (OHHEI), focusing on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and women’s participation in decision-making processes.

OHHEI Project Director, Mr. Peter Olayinka, represented by a consultant, Juliet Obiajulu, urged participants to contribute meaningfully toward advancing women’s leadership and combating GBV across communities in the state.

He said the workshop aimed to strengthen participants’ capacity to influence policies, challenge harmful cultural norms, and reinforce initiatives designed to prevent and respond to GBV.

Olayinka said women often faced bias even when they occupied leadership positions, and stressed that gender diversity improved the quality of decision-making and promoted innovation and accountability in governance structures.

Speaking, the Chairperson of the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Mr Eris Jewo-Ibi, identified cultural norms, domestic responsibilities, political resistance, and grassroots barriers as constraints to women’s participation.

Delta State GBV Desk Officer, Mrs. Rosemary Okpuno, emphasised that effective decision-making required women’s perspectives, adding that inclusion remained critical to addressing persistent gender-based challenges.

Voke Angbagh of the Delta State Ministry of Justice outlined penalties for rape and called for the establishment of special courts to handle sexual offences cases.

Angbagh said frequent adjournments delayed justice for survivors, stressing that dedicated sexual offences courts would ensure timely trials and stronger protection for victims in Delta State.

The Tide’s source reports that facilitators identified cultural acceptance of violence, unequal power relations, discrimination, poverty, limited education, and low self-esteem as major drivers of GBV.

They emphasised that violence and exclusion resulted in social, physical and emotional harm, imposed economic costs, reinforced harmful stereotypes, and widened existing gender inequalities.

The source also reports that OHHEI, a local non-profit organisation, focuses on education, health, environment, and social justice, promoting sustainable development initiatives with gender equality at the centre of its interventions.

Niger Delta

C’River Suspends Taskforce Activities Over Drivers’ Protest

Published

3 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Cross River State Government has suspended all taskforce activities connected to commercial transportation and ticketing across the state.

The State Governor, Bassey Otu, announced the suspension at an emergency stakeholders meeting on Friday in Calabar.

It would be recalled that commercial drivers in Calabar metropolis took to streets on Thursday to protest alleged multiple taxation and extortion by government agencies.

During the protest, the drivers alleged that taskforce groups claiming to represent the state government openly harassed and extorted them.

Represented at the meeting by Ekpenyong Akiba, his Special Adviser on General Duties, Otu said the suspension would subsist pending further review of the situation.

The Governor stated that the state government did not commission anyone to extort drivers in the name of task force.

He urged commercial drivers and other road users to remain law-abiding while government worked out a lasting solution.

On his part, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Calabar Metropolis, Mr. Sunday Dennis, expressed optimism that the dialogue would yield positive results.

He said the meeting had provided an opportunity for the aggrieved commercial drivers to present their concerns directly to the state government.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Unified Drivers Association, Mr. Nta Henshaw, described the harassment on drivers as worrisome, and urged the state government to be decisive in resolving the matter.

Niger Delta

A’Ibom Assembly Urges More Private Investments In Agriculture

Published

3 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly Committee on Nutrition and Food Security has called for more private sector investments in agriculture.

The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Moses Essien, made the call when the committee visited Aviclaire Farms, a private establishment in Usung Idem, Uruk Usoh in Abak Local Government Area.

Essien, who represents Ibiono Ibom in the Assembly, commended the Management of the farm for partnering an NGO, ECEWS, to promote private investment in agriculture.

He commended the partners for adopting climate-smart agriculture initiatives in their operations, adding that such move would promote food security.

“Your interest in using transformative intervention to promote food security is a veritable way of complementing the efforts of the state government,” he said.

The lawmaker continued that adopting practical climate-smart agriculture model would help to generate employment, improve nutrition outcomes, and strengthen food sufficiency.

He further said he was impressed with the strides recorded by the partners, saying, “your investment has created jobs for no fewer than 2,000 youths.

”You are an example of an environment-friendly investor. I urge Akwa Ibom residents to embrace environment-friendly and technology-driven agriculture models,” he said.

Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer, ECEWS, Dr. Andy Eyo, who conducted the committee round the farm, said the collaboration was conceived to demonstrate the viability of climate-smart farming in ensuring food sufficiency.

Eyo said the farm, which commenced operations with four greenhouses, had expanded to 14 within two years, and currently supplying high-quality produce to major markets in Uyo and neighbouring communities.

He said ECEWS was exploring cooperative frameworks to enable rural farmers and women’s groups to adopt greenhouse technology for sustainable livelihoods.

In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Aviclaire Farms, Mrs. Victoria Eyo, said the controlled-environment ensured precision cultivation and consistent yields.

She further said the farm served as a capacity-building centre for students, interns, and agri-business trainees.