NOA HOLDS YOUTHS SUMMIT IN UMUAHIA, ABIA STATE

Reporter : LAWRENCE NWOKEDI

The Director General National Orientation Agency (NOA), Dr. Garba Abari, has identified youths as an indispensable critical mass for meaningful national development.

Dr. Abari made this known in a message to a one day youth summit organized by the agency in Umuahia, Abia State.

Dr. Abari, represented by the NOA ABIA State Director, Dr. Ngozi Okechukwu, said the summit was a veritable platform of engagement with the youth on key national issues that were of utmost concern and with recommendations to address them effectively.

He maintained that the programme was borne out of urgent need to dialogue with youths on a sustainable basis and understand their challenges.

Dr. Abari advised youths to join hands with government in educating people in the communities on the need to accept the life-saving COVID-19 vaccine.

In a lecture entitled “Re-awaken the consciousness of the youth on the need to embrace the national core values and ethics,” the Dean College of Education, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike, Professor Ngozi Akanwa, urged youths to shun all forms of violence by embracing those core values and ethics that would unite the country as one indivisible entity.

In a remark, the Deputy Chairman of Umuahia North Local Government Area, Chief Bob Agbuba, while describing the theme of the summit as very apt, commended NOA for organizing the program.

He stated that it would go a long in reforming the core values of youths.

Also, the State Coordinator, National Directorate of Employment Abia State, Dr. Chijioke Uzoatuegwu, called on youths to ensure that they were engaged in one skill acquisition as being organized by the agency in order to be self reliant.

The theme of the one day Youth summit is “Youth Participation in National Development in the face of COVID-19.”