Akwa-Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno
Akwa Ibom State Governor Umo Eno announced plans to boost rural water supply in an effort to strengthen hygiene and sanitation in all the 369 wards of Akwa Ibom State.
Governor Eno, therefore directed the Ministry for Water Resources and Sanitation and the Akwa Ibom State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, (AKRUWATSAN), to partner with the Golden Initiative For All (GIFA) in ensuring the availability of water supply in each of the 369 Wards of the State.
The governor gave the directive during the 2nd Anniversary of GIFA, an initiative of his late wife who passed on two years ago.
“To immortalize the desire of my dear wife , Patience Umo Eno, we will partner GIFA to ensure adequate water supply in all the 369 Wards of the State.
“GIFA has truly shown leadership in this direction, and we will strongly partner with you. The 369 Wards of the State will have a GIFA Water Project,” he assured.
He lauded the Nigerian Governors’ Wives Forum, especially the wives of the Governors of Abia, Plateau and Edo States who were in attendance, for the love shown; the GIFA partners for their faith and steadfast support, and the people of Akwa Ibom State for their prayers and support.
Earlier, Helen Obareki, the governor’s daughter and coordinator, office of the First Lady expressed commitment towards continuing in the footsteps of her late mother by “inspiring a renewed sense of communal responsibility and social consciousness across the State.”
She highlighted GIFA’s achievements in the last two years adding that a total of 53,987 lives have been touched and impacted by GIFA across Akwa Ibom State.
She added that 4,900 rural women and children benefited from Wheels of Hope Medical Outreach while 10,800 senior citizens were supported by GIFA in two years.
“Also, Care for Persons with Disabilities – dedicated and sustainable support was provided to 160 People and 1,020 survivors of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) were reached and rehabilitated by GIFA during the period under review.”
In a nutshell, the impact of GIFA has been tremendous, and while we are proud of how far we have come, we are fully aware that there is still much work to be done, she stated.
“As the Golden Initiative for All (GIFA) enters its third landmark year, we are moving towards a future defined by two strategic imperatives: Institutionalisation and Global-Standard Expansion.
She disclosed that GIFA would launch an intensive, year-round Tech-Empowerment Accelerator where every year, 500 Akwa Ibom women will be equipped with market-ready, hands-on expertise in Software Development, Data Analytics, and Digital Innovation.
” We will provide high-level mentorship and employment-ready internships, grooming women who will become the primary architects of Akwa Ibom’s burgeoning digital economy.
She thanked the governor for the support and pledged to do more in all thematic areas of the programme.
The second anniversary of the project also featured the presentation of prizes to winners of essay competition and other activities including a public lecture.
(Ends)
Android
