Mkpoikana Udoma 19 November 2015, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – Eighty youths have graduated from a skills acquisition programme of the Andoni Cluster Development Board, CDB, organised and sponsored by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, SPDC, under its Global Memorandum of Understanding, GMoU, for the development of communities in the Niger Delta.
The 80 young women earned National Board of Technical Education-approved certificates at the end of a three-month intensive training programme in fashion and design, catering, cosmetology and computer education, under a partnership between the Shell’s GMoU with Andoni CDB and the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency, RSSDA, in Bori, Rivers State.
SPDC’s Head, Government and Community Relations, Mr. Edesiri Akpomudjere said Shell’s GMoU is hinged on the continuous development of its operational areas in the Niger Delta region as part of its corporate social responsibility.
“Our Global Memorandum of Understanding with our host communities is anchored on the principle that they should drive their own development and capacity building.
“This structure elevates SPDC and the host communities to the rank of partners, collaborating for a common purpose; the continued development of Nigeria’s Niger Delta region.”
Akpomudjere congratulated the beneficiaries for successfully completing the intensive training programme and challenged them to utilise the skills and networks they have gained from the training to their full potential.
Also, the Andoni CDB Chairman, Chief Gad Harry commended the SPDC joint venture for playing a key role in the success of the programme.
“These young women are our pride, the repository of our own values knowing the role they would play in our society tomorrow,” he said.
Some of the beneficiaries who spoke with newsmen said that the programme has equipped them with skills that would set them apart in an increasingly competitive job market and commended the SPDC joint venture for funding the development programmes of the Andoni CDB.