15th October, 2018
Mr Obafela Bank-Olemoh, Special Adviser to Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode on Education, says he is optimistic that the ‘ReadySetWork’ (RSW) initiative will continue in Lagos beyond the present administration.
Bank-Olemoh told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos that the next All Progressives Congress (APC) administration would build on the gains of the present one by continuing with projects that aid human capital development.
“APC, as a government in Lagos State, is committed to human capital development. Regardless of the fact that Gov. Ambode’s tenure will finish in May, we rest assured that the new administration will definitely continue in his steps in this regard.
“We have no fear at all that RSW will continue in the next administration because we believe Lagos State is an APC government.”
Bank-Olemoh said that the RSW programme had impacted positively on the students by giving them the opportunity of “real work experience”.
He was hopeful that those who passed through the programme, since 2016, would continue to exert positive influence in the state and the country at large.
“We believe that the RSW has impacted the lives of thousands of final year students.
“We are excited that the Ministry of Education has been able to deliver on the mandate given by the governor of Lagos.
“With this, we are convinced that we have produced the best graduates in the Federal Republic of Nigeria that will impact the local economy and the nation at large.
“My advice to the participants is to make the best of the opportunity given because we have taught them that there are no excuses for failure,” he said.
Over 5,000 final year students from eight tertiary institutions participated in the 2018 RSW programme.
The best students across the three training centres were selected to participate in a competition which held on Saturday.
Students who took part at the Lagos State University (LASU) centre came first, while those who took part at the University of Lagos centre came second.
The third place went to students that took part at the Lagos State Polytechnic centre.
‘Ready Set Work’ is an initiative of the Lagos State Ministry of Education, facilitated by the Office of the Special Adviser on Education.
It is aimed at equipping students with employability and entrepreneurship skills needed after graduation.
Oluwaseyi Hassan, a participant from Lagos State University, told NAN that the skills acquired had become a part of him, and thanked the Lagos State Government for the initiative.
“The competition has been an eye opener for me, because prior to this, I have not been paying attention to details, current affairs.
“I am a student of Public Administration, and reading about science and technology, current affairs, entertainment, arts and so on has given me an insight as to what is happening all over the world,” Hassan, who was also one of the winners of the RSW global challenge competition said.