NDDC picks 30 best budding female tech-kids in oil region

The best 30 budding female scientists and technologists were Wednesday, fished out of their hidden coves in the oil region by eagle-eyed experts from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) headed by Ibim Semenitari.

The 30 came out at Uyo in Akwa Ibom State, Port Harcourt in Rivers State and Benin City in Edo State, after a regional contest called Girls in Engineering, Mathematics and Science (GEMS).

At noon on Wednesday, the contestants, number 90 after over 1000 had started the contest months ago, sat in Uyo, Port Harcourt and Benin City to present their technology projects to assessors who picked the best 10 in each centre.

Port Harcourt had Rivers, Bayelsa and Imo contestants; Uyo had Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Abia, while Benin City had Delta, Edo and Ondo.

Ibim, who incidentally is an English Language graduate and professional journalist, reeled statistics to show that the world was tilting almost towards science and that anyone who did not have strong science or technological backup might not pin down a good job.

Ibim told the female contestants in the Port Harcourt zone that gender parity required giving females a chance to excel too.

She said there would be huge job opportunity gap in the future of female students from the oil region failed to take the study of sciences seriously. “We are out to improve the girls, women and human resource capabilities, and education as mandated by the Master Plan of the NDDC”.

The coordinator of the Port Harcourt centre, Virginia Major, a pharmacist and Rotarian with huge community service background, said the aim is to make the females to stick to the sciences after the initial years instead of abandoning it for the boys. “The idea is to make science fun to the girl-child. Girls tend to shy away from sciences and believe that it is for boys who are rugged”.

She said it was important to help the girls discover their confidence, ability and excitement in the sciences. She talked against the tendency for girls to rely on handouts from boys who also wait for handouts from government officials thereby creating a dependence syndrome in the oil region.

“We want to show the girls that they can earn the sobriquet GEMS and feel so too.” She said the teachers were now excited and eager to produce world-beaters. The result would attract goodies to the schools and winners too, she revealed. She said the contest was limited to public and mission schools.

The best student may attract a Chemistry laboratory to the school,  the second a Physics lab and the third a Biology lab, according to the NDDC boss who hoped it would be sustained.

The contest revealed brilliant baby scientists such as Umesi Chirunim (Uniport demonstration school) who invented a device to tap current from source without wires; Ariemiokhale Osehi of Federal Government College in Port Harcourt, who invented a tractor without fuel needs; Sandra Okwuoma who made a local android that can remote control all the appliances in a home; Gift Agodi from Imo State who developed a water filtration system that can work in homes and communities; and Chinenyenwa Ekeanyanwu who developed insect repellent fluid with edible fruits/herbs without hazards . Some other smart girls developed a sumo that can pump water by pressure system without power source, automated plant watering device, etc.

One of the teachers, Emmanuel Chukwuemeka from Government Girls College, Owerri, said the NDDC had done well to help people the girl scientists. He said most girls sat back and expected sciences to be for boys. Now, he said, many girls have woken up and want to show their mettle too. He appealed for continuation.