Yesterday in Abuja, the Minister of state for Science and Technology, Mohammed Abdullahi, Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, Director General of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Julie Okah-Donli, Actress Tonto Dikeh amongst other notable dignitaries convened for the official flagoff of “Girls In ICT For Youth Inclusion”, a project initiated by African Scholars Care Initiative-ASCI.
The occasion of the induction exercise of 100 Girls for an ICT Certification course with the Digital Skills Foundation in Paris, France, was also designed to commemorate the the International Youths Day. The exercise and project has been described as one of the most typically proactive empowerment project to support women empowerment and enable sporadic development of youths in Nigeria and across Africa.
In the remarks of the Honourable Minister of State for Science and Technology, Mr. Mohammed Abdullahi, he commended the efforts Mrs. Joy Onumajuru, the Founder of ASCI and assured her of the Ministry’s collaboration by providing some level of support in terms of expertise and funding. He says, “we have programmes in Federal Ministry of Science and Technology which they can identify with and exploit them for the benefits of the girl child. We have interest in the empowerment of women and girl child, particularly in terms of education in order to take them off the streets and make them useful to themselves, their families and the society”, he concluded.
Speaking during the occasion of the Induction, the African Union Delegate stated that they where commited to support the Increasing number of girls to be empowered for ICT, so as to meet the collective target for youth engagement in global development. He however called on governments across all levels to leverage on the African Union projects which focuses of Enterpreneurship, Employability, Education and Engagements.
Also speaking during the “Girls In ICT For Youth Inclusion” Induction training exercise, the Founder and President of African Scholars Care Initiative-ASCI, Mrs. Joy Onumajuru noted that the objective of this training would be premised on exposing young girls to the huge opportunities in ICT which, apparently, has redefined global businesses and other socioeconomic operations.
In the remarks by Mrs. Pauline Tallen, the Honourable Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, she commended ASCI Team for initiating such program that holds many prospective opportunities for the empower of girls in Nigeria and across Africa. She promised her continued support, stressing that women need knowledge such as ICT to remain relevant to themselves and the entire society in this 21st century world.
