The Federal Cooperative College Oji River, Enugu State is currently playing host to youths selected from the 5 Southeast states in Nigeria.
The youths ,converged on the college for the Federal Government N-Skill training programme on Auto-mechanic and Aluminum Assembly and Fabrication, organized by Fordgate Nigeria Limited in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.
Speaking on the choice of Federal Cooperative College Oji River as the venue for the training sessions, the Provost of the College, Dr. Owan Obodagu Tonica said a delegation from Abuja came to the school on facility assessment and that after a tour of the college facilities, it was approved as the venue for the Federal Government N-Skill training programme for the Southeast zone.
The Provost stated that the College hostels, classrooms and other facilities were inspected and found conducive and serene enough to provide the needed hospitality for her visitors.
He said the trainees were youths from the Southeast, who will be empowered by the Federal Government at the end of the training.
Also, the College’s internal auditor, Mr. Okeze Chukwudi Idowu, noted that a need assessment was conducted in the Southeast and that the findings of the survey formed the nitty-gritty of the N-SKILL training programme even as he said that the mandate of the Federal Cooperative College Oji River was to instill cooperative education amongst Nigerians.
Meanwhile, Assistant Production Manager, Ginika Promise Okoh, who spoke for the Production Manager, said the objective of the programme was to equip youths with relevant skills on automobile mechanics as well as aluminum assembly and fabrication.
She said the trainees would be given some capital, equipment and certificates at the end of the programme to enable them commence their own enterprise, adding that the participants were youths drawn from the Southeast zone of the country.
Sampson Edih, an instructor on Aluminum and Fabrication, said the programme will help youths take their future into their hands and also help to reduce the unemployment rate in the country. Another instructor on an automobile, who is also a lecturer at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, Engr. Omego G.N, said the capacity building programme was designed to help graduates and non-graduates get their bearings.
Omego also posited that the infrastructure at the Federal Cooperative College Oji River was top-notch coupled with the hospitality the College provided, adding that the institution should be considered the first choice for educational pursuits by the citizenry. One of the trainees from the Automobile section, Mr. Chinonso Uba, who hails from Anambra state, said it was a laudable project while thanking the Federal Government for such innovation.
Also another trainee, Mr. Chibueze Ekedike, who hails from Abia State, described the training programme as timely and believes too that the training has exposed him to a lot of opportunities, especially in Auto-mechanic.
He said the environment at the Federal Cooperative College Oji River is friendly and that the College provided all that they needed. That the training programme was a veritable means of conquering poverty in the country.
