The Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information, Ini Ememebong, has said that the Information Technology (IT) training undertaken by the state’s Ministry of Information and Strategy for its staff was in line with the policy of Human Capital Development of the Governor Udom Emmanuel administration.
Ememebong, who spoke to BusinessDay editors at the venue of the training workshop with the theme ‘Soft Skills for Contemporary Survival,’ explained further that the training was to equip the staff of the ministry to do their work better in the 21st century and also to enable them make extra money for themselves.
“The idea behind the training is to train our civil servants to manage the 21st century challenges of governance. Politicians have statutory period in governance, they come and go; it is the civil servants that stay long in service. To that end, they must be exposed to the latest tools to enable them excel in what they do.
“Again, we want our staff to make extra money for themselves. With the knowledge on how to properly apply technology in their day-to-day life, they will be able to make money above what they earn as staff.
“Why do we consider that necessary? It is because we are not selfish; when we see good things we expose our people to take advantage; that is the spirit and policy of the Governor Udom Emmanuel administration.”
Addressing the staff, he said: “It is our belief that when you are making money for yourselves, you would be able to work better for the government. A wealthy workforce will be happy to work better and happily. The training, the exposure is just to prove to you that you don’t just give to the ministry, the ministry will also give to you as long as we are here.”
The commissioner further explained that the state Ministry of Information was also interested in catering for the need of every indigene of the state, hence, the decision to train staff to develop special competences to serve one and all in the state.
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“We have staff who specialise in Sign Language, Chinese Language and others so that we can effectively communicate to various categories of people and need without leaving anyone behind,” he said.
He urged the staff to take the training seriously and avoid the euphoria of being part of the class without getting anything in the end. He also advised them to sustain the excitement they had on the first day of the training to the point of realising the essence of the exercise.
“I want to urge you to avoid the feeling of complacency which comes with the feeling of too much excitement. Some people are so excited to the point of being overwhelmed and they forget the major reason. Sometimes, those who celebrate the most at matriculation hardly make it well to convocation. Do not allow your excitement becloud the reason for being here. It is an opportunity; get all you are supposed to get for that lasting excitement,” he said.
Ubokobong Udeme Akpan, who just returned from a state-sponsored training in London, said the trip had exposed him to the limitless opportunities in Information Technology (IT).
“There are lots of job opportunities in IT. It was a great journey. I am excited to be back and passionate about the knowledge,” Akpan said.
He is among the youth that have received the state government’s sponsorship for overseas training on IT. They are expected to give back to the state upon their return by training others for possible multiplier effects.
