The Edo State Government at the weekend commenced the recruitment of teachers in rural and coastal communities under the Edo Supporting Teachers to Achieve Results (Edo STAR) Teaching Fellowship Programme.

The EdoSTAR Teaching Fellowship Programme is a three-year training and field experience employment programme for teachers and aspiring teachers who would be migrated into the state’s civil service upon satisfactory performance in the programme.

Executive Chairman, Edo State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr. Joan Osa Oviawe, in a statement, noted that the EdoSTAR Teaching Fellowship Programme was open to those with or without teaching credentials.

“Those who have not received their teaching qualifications will be required to obtain their PGDE or PDE through the Edo State College of Education during the first two years of the programme.

“The EdoSTAR Teaching Fellowship Programme comes with a salary and performance-based incentives and bonuses,” she added.

Oviawe disclosed that the purpose of the programme was to hire teachers to teach in their communities, adding, “The minimum qualifications are NCE, HND, B.ED and B.Sc.”

Also, no fewer than 43 youths in the state benefited from the Federal Government’s Vocational Training and Strategic Empowerment Scheme on Agricultural Export Produce organised by the National Centre for Agricultural Mechanisation (NCAM), under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Speaking at the opening ceremony in Igarra, Akoko-Edo Council Area, Director of Training at NCAM, Mohammed Sanni, said the programme was aimed at promoting agriculture and self-sufficiency among the youth.

Sanni said the youth would undergo a three-day training on export produce, adding that the beneficiaries would be empowered to start their agriculture export businesses.

“The training will expose the youth to exportable agricultural produce outside the country. It is a way of making the youth self-reliant and economically independent by embarking on the business,” he said.

Addressing the beneficiaries, representative of Akoko-Edo Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Peter Akpatason, said the initiative was aimed at empowering the youth economically to curb social vices in the constituency.

He said that the programme was in line with the Federal Government’s vision for food security and jobs creation, adding that each of the beneficiaries would be given start-up cash of between N200,000 and N300,000.

He, however, advised the youth to make good use of the opportunity, adding: “The empowerment programme is in line with the objective of grooming the youth to become job-creators, rather than job-seekers.

“It is hoped that this will encourage the youth to take up other agricultural activities to empower themselves,’’ he said. (The Guardian)

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