The Chairman of the Science Technical and vocational Schools management Board (STVSMB), Enugu State, Dr. Amaka Ngene, has emphasized the need for Nigeria to focus on producing new generational youths that are skilful and technological driven for the advancement of Nation's economy.
She posited that no nation in the 21st century could advance, or make any meaningful headway in any sector without the contribution of technological and skilful youths.
The STVSMB Chairman spoke on Thursday when she received the Good Governance class Post Graduate students of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) from the institute for Peace, Conflict, and Development Studies (IPCDS), who were at the remodelled Government Technical College, GTC, Enugu on an internship visit.
The new look GTC, Science and Vocational Education Center Enugu was recently commissioned by the wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu during her visit to Enugu State.
Ngene said Enugu State was focused on producing youths that are self-reliant and technologically driven and that could help in driving the state economy in the nearest future.
She disclosed that the administration allocates 33.3 percent of the state annual budget to the all important sector, adding that the administration had committed about 2 billion naira in the remodelling project.
According to her, the concept of the centre was to "grow a new generation of skilled youths that would be empowered and technically driven who upon graduation could earn a living as well as contribute to the society."
Ngene, who conducted the students round various departments of the Centre, disclosed that over 100 science and vocational education teachers were currently undergoing training in the state to bridge the gap between technical and vocational education.
She narrated to the students how the current administration met a dilapidated GTC and how the school was transformed within a short period by the state government.
Speaking with newsmen, a post graduate lecturer on Peace, and National Cohesion at the IPCDS, who led the students, Dr. Ben Nwoye, explained that the essence of the visit was to enable the students evaluate good governance as demonstrated by the state governor who allocated thirty three percent of the state budget on education.
The visit, he added, would also afford the students the opportunity of seeing how good governance had translated to revamping technical and vocational education at the Government Technical College Enugu GTC.
Nwoye, who was accompanied on the visit by the Institute’s Academic Coordinator, Dr. Chiedozie Nwafor, who stood in for the IPCDS Director, Professor Felix Asogwa, said: "I teach governance, and to me governance is not just theoretical.
"We cannot be talking about governance and the principles of governance without finding a method of demonstrating to the students what governance is".
"So, today we came to GTC and met with the chairman of the management board, Dr. Amaka Ngene and the Directors to show us what happened, what is responsible for the transformation, how it happened.
"Is good governance achieved through technological advancement, we want to know it practically. That is why we engaged in what I call a one day internship. My students are advanced students.
"We can't just be developing theses and coming up with theories and publications, yet what is on ground doesn't match what is on paper.
"So they have come here, they have seen what the last administration left and they have seen what the new administration, the new board is putting on ground, led by governor Peter Mbah.
"They have also seen the vision, it is not just what is on ground but the vision of where the future is. Why would governor Peter Mbah decide to allocate 33.3 percent of the state's budget to education?
“We want to see why exactly he decided to do that. We want to see where the money is going into”, Nwoye stated.