Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, has approved automatic employment into the state civil service for 19 best-graduating students of the third cohort of the Abia TechRise Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills development programme.
The governor announced the decision on Thursday, August 21, 2026, during the graduation ceremony of 850 youths who completed the three-month programme at the JAAC Secretariat in Umuahia.
Beyond the employment offer, Otti approved a cash gift of N100,000 for each of the 850 graduands and directed that the laptops provided for their training be handed over to them as personal property.
The governor said the decision to retain the 19 top performers was aimed at preventing the state from losing highly skilled young talents produced through the programme.
According to him, the beneficiaries would be deployed to address identified ICT gaps across government institutions and contribute their expertise to improving public service delivery.
Otti consequently directed the Head of Service, Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation and the state’s Chief Information Officer to identify areas where the skills of the TechRise graduates could be effectively deployed.
He also directed the development of a special salary structure for ICT professionals within the state civil service, subject to applicable conditions.
The governor urged the graduands not to stop learning, stressing that the knowledge and skills acquired during the training should serve as a foundation for further professional development.
He challenged them to turn their skills into businesses, innovations and employment opportunities while warning against using their technological knowledge for criminal activities.
Otti also expressed interest in a functional drone developed by some of the graduands and directed the relevant ministry to work with the team towards taking the innovation beyond the prototype stage and exploring its commercial potential.
The governor further disclosed plans by his administration to establish international-standard ICT examination and certification centres in Abia. The initiative, he said, would allow residents to obtain globally recognised professional certifications without travelling outside the state.
He added that discussions were ongoing with MTN to improve internet penetration across the state.
The Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Prince Uzor Nwachukwu, said the TechRise initiative had trained 2,210 youths across three cohorts over the past one and a half years.
He described the programme as a major human capital development initiative that has equipped young people from Abia and other parts of Nigeria with practical technological skills.
The TechRise Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer of LearnFactory, Engr. Chibueze Ukaegbu, disclosed that the programme had also trained 2,500 civil servants in computer skills, with plans to increase the figure to 5,000.
He said the organisation had authored coding books and would donate 500 copies to smart schools, while also proposing the introduction of coding education in primary and secondary schools.
Ukaegbu also disclosed plans to establish an “Abia One Stop Platform” as part of efforts to support the state government.
The graduation ceremony was attended by mayors of several local government areas and other senior government officials.
