Niger Delta

UNICAL Demonstration School Wins SAGE 2024

Published

2 years ago

June 24, 2024

The University of Calabar International Demonstration Secondary School has won the 2024 edition of the Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE) competition.
By coming tops at the national competition, the School will represent Nigeria at the global level in Tokyo.
The school presented a solar-powered Chi ECOSOL Freeze Storage System, equiped with off-grid capacity for areas with limited or unreliable traditional electricity.
The system uses high efficiency cooling storage unit to preserve fresh produce and vegetables.
The Tide’s source reports that Federal Government Girls College (FGGC) Abuloma, finished second with a project on Bio Fortification of Cassava Flour at the finals held in Calabar.
The source also reports that FGGC Benin came third with their project on Tomato Powder.
It would be recalled that Nigeria has won 12 out of the 17 international SAGE completions held in different parts of the world after its premier edition in 2002 in America.
The theme for this year’s edition of the competition is: “Mobilising Education for Food Security”.
Speaking during the award ceremony on Monday in Calabar, Mr Peter Odey, the Cross River Deputy Governor, said the theme for the 2024 edition of the competition was apt and well thought-out.
Represented by Hilary Bisong, the member representing Boki Constituency II at the State House of Assembly, Odey, said that the theme touched on a major challenge in todays human society.
He said there was need for a multifaceted global campaign against hunger and food scarcity.
“Nobody who has access to three square meals in a day will start thinking of crimes and violence.
“Our state has very fertile soil, the winning school has proffered solution to the challenge of food storage and preservation.
“For example, in Boki, we always have so much food after harvest, but a lot of the foods get wasted due to poor storage, so this project gives us a solution”, he said.
Also speaking, the President, SAGE Nigeria, Mr Agwu Amogu, said that the essence of the initiative was to make young people to become solution providers through entrepreneurship and community service.
Amogu said the initiative had directly and indirectly impacted on no fewer than 200,000 people since 2005 when it took effect in Nigeria.
“Also, no fewer than 8,000 students have passed through the initiative, many of them have graduated, and are now alumni of SAGE.
“Our goal is to move the mindset of young Nigerians from entitlement to being solution and innovation providers.
“This new mindset will not only create jobs for them, it will even make them to become job creators and self-reliant”, he said.
On her part, 15 year old Miss Victory Idiku, the team lead of UniCal International Demonstration Secondary School, expressed her team’s joy after wining the competition.
“It took us several weeks of research to create that innovative project, it also took a lot of hard work to effectively present it.
“We are happy to represent Nigeria at the global event in Tokyo, we promise to make our nation proud”, she said.

Niger Delta

Stakeholders In Delta Seek Stronger GBV Action, Women’s Leadership

Published

6 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

Stakeholders in Delta State convened in Asaba for a leadership workshop organised by Otdel Health Heritage and Environmental Initiative (OHHEI), focusing on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and women’s participation in decision-making processes.

OHHEI Project Director, Mr. Peter Olayinka, represented by a consultant, Juliet Obiajulu, urged participants to contribute meaningfully toward advancing women’s leadership and combating GBV across communities in the state.

He said the workshop aimed to strengthen participants’ capacity to influence policies, challenge harmful cultural norms, and reinforce initiatives designed to prevent and respond to GBV.

Olayinka said women often faced bias even when they occupied leadership positions, and stressed that gender diversity improved the quality of decision-making and promoted innovation and accountability in governance structures.

Speaking, the Chairperson of the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Mr Eris Jewo-Ibi, identified cultural norms, domestic responsibilities, political resistance, and grassroots barriers as constraints to women’s participation.

Delta State GBV Desk Officer, Mrs. Rosemary Okpuno, emphasised that effective decision-making required women’s perspectives, adding that inclusion remained critical to addressing persistent gender-based challenges.

Voke Angbagh of the Delta State Ministry of Justice outlined penalties for rape and called for the establishment of special courts to handle sexual offences cases.

Angbagh said frequent adjournments delayed justice for survivors, stressing that dedicated sexual offences courts would ensure timely trials and stronger protection for victims in Delta State.

The Tide’s source reports that facilitators identified cultural acceptance of violence, unequal power relations, discrimination, poverty, limited education, and low self-esteem as major drivers of GBV.

They emphasised that violence and exclusion resulted in social, physical and emotional harm, imposed economic costs, reinforced harmful stereotypes, and widened existing gender inequalities.

The source also reports that OHHEI, a local non-profit organisation, focuses on education, health, environment, and social justice, promoting sustainable development initiatives with gender equality at the centre of its interventions.

Niger Delta

C’River Suspends Taskforce Activities Over Drivers’ Protest

Published

6 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Cross River State Government has suspended all taskforce activities connected to commercial transportation and ticketing across the state.

The State Governor, Bassey Otu, announced the suspension at an emergency stakeholders meeting on Friday in Calabar.

It would be recalled that commercial drivers in Calabar metropolis took to streets on Thursday to protest alleged multiple taxation and extortion by government agencies.

During the protest, the drivers alleged that taskforce groups claiming to represent the state government openly harassed and extorted them.

Represented at the meeting by Ekpenyong Akiba, his Special Adviser on General Duties, Otu said the suspension would subsist pending further review of the situation.

The Governor stated that the state government did not commission anyone to extort drivers in the name of task force.

He urged commercial drivers and other road users to remain law-abiding while government worked out a lasting solution.

On his part, the Chairman, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria, Calabar Metropolis, Mr. Sunday Dennis, expressed optimism that the dialogue would yield positive results.

He said the meeting had provided an opportunity for the aggrieved commercial drivers to present their concerns directly to the state government.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Unified Drivers Association, Mr. Nta Henshaw, described the harassment on drivers as worrisome, and urged the state government to be decisive in resolving the matter.

Niger Delta

A’Ibom Assembly Urges More Private Investments In Agriculture

Published

6 days ago

March 2, 2026

The Tide

The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly Committee on Nutrition and Food Security has called for more private sector investments in agriculture.

The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Moses Essien, made the call when the committee visited Aviclaire Farms, a private establishment in Usung Idem, Uruk Usoh in Abak Local Government Area.

Essien, who represents Ibiono Ibom in the Assembly, commended the Management of the farm for partnering an NGO, ECEWS, to promote private investment in agriculture.

He commended the partners for adopting climate-smart agriculture initiatives in their operations, adding that such move would promote food security.

“Your interest in using transformative intervention to promote food security is a veritable way of complementing the efforts of the state government,” he said.

The lawmaker continued that adopting practical climate-smart agriculture model would help to generate employment, improve nutrition outcomes, and strengthen food sufficiency.

He further said he was impressed with the strides recorded by the partners, saying, “your investment has created jobs for no fewer than 2,000 youths.

”You are an example of an environment-friendly investor. I urge Akwa Ibom residents to embrace environment-friendly and technology-driven agriculture models,” he said.

Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer, ECEWS, Dr. Andy Eyo, who conducted the committee round the farm, said the collaboration was conceived to demonstrate the viability of climate-smart farming in ensuring food sufficiency.

Eyo said the farm, which commenced operations with four greenhouses, had expanded to 14 within two years, and currently supplying high-quality produce to major markets in Uyo and neighbouring communities.

He said ECEWS was exploring cooperative frameworks to enable rural farmers and women’s groups to adopt greenhouse technology for sustainable livelihoods.

In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Aviclaire Farms, Mrs. Victoria Eyo, said the controlled-environment ensured precision cultivation and consistent yields.

She further said the farm served as a capacity-building centre for students, interns, and agri-business trainees.