The President, Defence and Police Officers Wives Association (DEPOWA) Mrs. Omobolanle Olonisakin has reiterated the need for Nigeria as a nation and the military/Paramilitary agencies to prioritize the welfare and well being of families of fallen heroes particularly widows, their wards and the needy in our society.
The Wife of the Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Olonisakin spoke at the graduation ceremony of ‘batch 7’ trainees of the DEPOWA Skills Acquisition Centre in Abuja.
At the ceremony, a total of 40 students graduated in different vocations, 16 of whom are widows while 5 are vulnerable youths.
They were trained in Catering Services, Tailoring, Fashion Designing, Cake-making among others
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Mrs. Olonisakin said, “DEPOWA Skills Acquisition Centre has come a long way since inception. A total of 228 students out of which 112 of them are widows have so far graduated from this citadel of learning and most are performing commendably well in their trade of choice.
“Today, 40 students will be graduating in different vocations, 16 of whom are widows while 5 are vulnerable youths.
“To the graduands, I say well done, you have done well. We have groomed you to help secure your future and in the process be and employer of labour and give livelihood to others too. Go forth and shine like the stars that you truly are.
“As it is our custom since the inception of this empowerment programme, the widows and vulnerable youths amongst you will be given trade starter packs and financial assistance to secure a shop.
Meanwhile, I want to appreciate staff of DEPOWA secretariat and DEPOWA Skills Acquisition Centre.
At the ceremony, the graduands were each presented N60, 000 in addition to the starter pack to commence business while it was revealed that for the 3 months that the training programme lasted, DEPOWA supported them with N10,000 monthly as transport allowances. Â Â
 The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) was represented at the occasion by the Chief of Administration at Defence headquarters, Rear Admiral A. Suleiman .
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