Rivers
PH Rotary Club Empowers Rehabilitation Homes With Skills Acquisition
The Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Garden City has empowered residents of three rehabilitation homes in Port Harcourt with life skills acquisition needed to make a living after living the Homes.
The beneficiary Homes are Port Harcourt Safe Home, the Remand Home and the Port Harcourt Children’s Home, where residents were taught life skills on how to make liquid soap, air freshener and bleach.
Speaking at the programme, President of the Club, Rotarian Karina Igonikon, noted that the project was in line with the economic development and empowerment programme of the club, aimed at showing love to the Homes as well as empowering residents with productive skills that can help them have a good livelihood after leaving the Homes.
“This month, the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Garden City looked at those under the Ministry of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation and thought it wise to empower them.
“So, we decided to teach them this life skill that will enable them make money from sales of the products: liquid soap, bleach and air freshener. That way, they are empowered and have a skill and even after they leave the home, they have this skill to fall back on to earn a living.
“This is our aim of carrying out this project: to give them a source of livelihood, to train them and let them know they are loved. That’s what Rotary is all about, serving humanity and creating hope in the world”, she said.
Also speaking at a one-day skills acquisition programme, Director of Administration, Ministry of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation, Owiriwa Darlington Kinikanwo, lauded the programme as one that is in line with the objective of the Ministry.
Kinikanwo called on like minded organisations to take a leaf from the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Garden City as there are many areas of intervention, especially in the rehabilitation programmes of the Ministry.
“On behalf of the Ministry, I must sincerely thank the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Garden City because it is a worthwhile project they have brought to the Ministry.
“We are always willing to partner, especially when it is a good project that we know will be beneficial to the Ministry. So it’s a very good thing”, he said.
He also called on good spirited Nigerians to partner with the Ministry in providing welfare services to vulnerable indigents groups in the State.
“The Ministry of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation basically provides welfare services in terms of vocational skills like this, so we often call for partnership as government alone cannot do everything especially with regards to social welfare provision.
“So, organisations as part of their community social responsibility (CSR) activities can partner with the Ministry to make sure that the indigent ones that are kept in their custody can benefit from these programmes.
“Thus, we would say learn from Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Garden City because they have set the pace and let others follow”, he said.
Tonye Nria-Dappa