Oyebanji Launches Ekiti Digital Skill Academy

Gbenga Sodeinde in Ado Ekiti

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, has launched the Ekiti State Digital Skill Academy, as he restated his administration’s commitment to wealth creation and shared prosperity.

Speaking at the launch and beneficiary orientation at the conference hall of the Governor’s Office in Ado Ekiti, the governor said making job creation and youth development number one in his administration’s six-point agenda is a pointer that his administration is particular about youth development.

The governor, who said about 500 youths would be given laptop computers and other devices to facilitate their learning process for the next one year of their intensive training, expressed confidence that through right knowledge and digital skill, vocational education, small and medium scale development, sport development and entertainment, Ekiti youths can get to any level in life and become financially independent.

According to him, “As a people, you determine how much you go in life and you determine the height you want to reach-you can choose your own game and the speed at which you play the game-the fact that you are here in Ekiti State does not make you a second class citizen, I say no to that, and we have brought everything to your door step.”

Speaking further, Governor Oyebanji said the Ekiti people are known to be educated and intelligent, adding that these attributes must be translated into wealth creation and not poverty, which is why Ekiti Knowledge Zone was designed based on the peculiarity of the Ekiti people.

“The Ekiti Knowledge Zone was designed based on the fact that we realise our own peculiarity as a people, they called Ekiti State the state of intellectual. If a people are intelligent and knowledgeable, they cannot be poor, so if we are known to be educated, intelligent, home of professors, then the thesis should be wealth creation and not poverty,” the governor asserted.

While thanking Meta and Tech4Dev for partnering the state government, Oyebanji urged the beneficiaries to maximise the advantage of the digital skills for legitimate jobs and poverty eradication.

Speaking earlier, the state Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Mr. Akin Oyebode, who thanked the governor for this giant stride, said the programme was a fulfillment of Oyebanji’s campaign promises of shared prosperity for the people of the state.

In the same vein, the representative of Meta, Mr. Emeka Okafor, and Tech4Dev, Mr. Joel Ogunsola, in their separate goodwill messages commended Ekiti State Government for the initiative and charged the beneficiaries to give the training the seriousness it deserves.