Lagos State Education District III on Thursday organised an empowerment programme for its teaching and non-teaching staff in different areas of interest as a way of creating an avenue for the participants to use their leisure periods productively and profitably.
Speaking at the commencement of the training programme on Drawings, Paintings, Tye and Dye, Crafts, Hat Making, Ankara Bags and Ankara Belts among others in Ikoyi, the Tutor-General/Permanent Secretary, Education District III, Dr. Olufolayimika Ayandele, said the training was designed to expose the beneficiaries to various opportunities in the areas of their passion.
Ayandele said the officers had the option to learn the skills of their choice from the available courses at the programme, stressing that the gesture was in line with the efforts of the State Government towards empowering Lagosians. The programme is one of the several ways the District is boosting the morale of the teachers for more effective service delivery.
Her words: “What we have done here today is not only focusing on education, teaching and learning. We have also empowered our staff and we will continue to empower them. We will also train them to be technology inclined. We will teach them how to design using different applications. Today’s training is the first stage, we will go further because it is not a one-off thing”.
She explained that the training was necessary to make officers happy while performing their primary assignments and also give them a sense of fulfilment in another area of interest.
The Director, Co-Curricular Science and Technology, Education District III, Mrs. Aderonke Odunsi-Titus, said the participants can make good use of the skills they have learnt to make money during their leisure time, adding that officers, who are also retiring, can leverage on the acquired skill to start a small business during their retirement.
She, therefore, urged the beneficiaries to use what they have learnt to increase their financial standing, saying “Don’t take what you have learnt here for granted because it is free, but be determined to produce these items on your own and start selling them to people and make money”.
Odunsi-Titus said Lagos will remain the pacesetter among others, adding that a lot is being done to empower Lagosians by other relevant agencies of government, stressing that the District is only following the same path to empower its staff.
She said, “This is our own little effort to empower others and encourage them to learn new skills that will make them contribute meaningfully to the society, financially independent and self-reliant”.
One of the participants and a Deputy Director, School Support Unit, Education District III, Mrs. Bridget Oyedele, said the training was an opportunity to acquire a resourceful skill and thanked the TG/PS for the opportunity given to them.
