The Edo State Government in partnership with Imose Technologies Limited have commissioned a tablet-making and repair centre at the Benin Technical College.
At the commissioning of the Imose Tablet Production Centre, Governor Godwin Obaseki said the centre would equip the students and others with the skills to produce and repair tablet devices.
Reaffirming the government’s commitment to technical and vocational education, the governor said his administration was connecting all the 18 local government areas to fibres, which will be extended to schools in the state to drive the industrial revolution.
He said, “In 2016 and 2017 when we took over office, over 30,000 Edo youths struggled to cross to Libya and other countries, and education was one of the problems that prompted such moves. We did not accept the drop in attendance in schools as it facilitated irregular migration and human trafficking. My administration moved to change this trajectory. We are achieving results and have been recognised around the world.
“This is a milestone, as we are using this to change the entire pedagogy and change our post-education system. The vision is to change the education sector and we want to invite industries to come into this Institution to establish their base. This will not just be a school but also a production centre, creating opportunities for practicals, as contractors will use materials from the school,” he added.
The Chief Executive Officer of Imose, Osayi Izedonmwen, said the programme was aimed to train 100 students for now.
According to him, his outfit is committed to building a robust technology base in the country.
He noted that the time was right for the country to produce the gadget it uses, noting that it would help develop skills and lead to economic viability to the students and the society.
“We as an indigenous company, we believed that the time has come for Nigerians to produce what they used.
“For us to do that, we need to have a robust long extra energy. First of all, to build the talents that are required to operate manufacturing facilities that would run those devices. We have a partnership with Technical and Vocation Board in Edo State is to site a Tablets Production and Repair Centre, here at Benin Technical College.
“The intention is to engage in multiple production, one of these is to train students of this college on how to produce tablet, assemble and repair, and to give them skills that would make the self-reliance so that as they graduate from school facilities, and move into the society, they can become economically viable individuals that can employ themselves gainfully through the skill the gain here.
“Secondly, because of our commitment to Nigerians, we also want to build a base that will give us production facilities to further expand our capabilities around tablets production, smartphones production, browser, WiFi and others.
“We believe this is the right time to do some technical integration and start bringing in semi-knock-down components and assemble them here in Nigeria,’’ he said.
