Borno Mass Literacy Agency Registers 1,000 Nomads

Source: thewillnigeria.com

SAN FRANCISCO, September 16, (THEWILL) - About 1,000 nomads have been registered for the adult education and skill acquisition programme of the Borno State Mass Literacy Agency since the beginning of this year.

Disclosing this while speaking with journalists in Maiduguri, the state capital, the Agency's Director, Alhaji Abbah Alibe, said 350 persons had been enrolled into the post literacy programme, basic, and computer training of the Agency.

He listed the beneficiaries to include women, youth, widows and the most vulnerable members of the society, saying traders, businessmen and some adults who never went to school also benefitted from the scheme.

According to him, the scheme was aimed at empowering the beneficiaries to becoming self-sustaining, stressing that the Boko Haram insurgency was caused by lack of education which could only be eliminated with good education.

He added that the agency in collaboration with the Society for Widows and Tsangaya Pupil (SWOT) Foundation also empowered 40 women on skills acquisition and vocational training programme.

According to Alibe, during the three-month programme, the participants were taught on different skills which included knitting, tailoring, beads making and computer training, disclosing that the sum of N10,000 was given to each of the beneficiaries as take-off grant to enable them stand on their own.

“The wife of the Borno Governor Hajiya Nana Shettima also assisted the beneficiaries with tailoring machines, computers and other relevant things to assist the beneficiaries, ” he said, adding that the Agency had shut down almost all its training centres across the 27 Local Government Areas due to the Boko Haram insurgency.

Alibe lamented that the agency only make use of eight centres located in Maiduguri as he appealed to the state government to build more centres to ensure more participation.

The Director also appealed to the state government and other patriotic members of the society to assist in empowering the less-privileged and vulnerable members of the society to acquire education.