By Peter Okutu
ABAKALIKI — Ebonyi State governor, Mr Martins Elechi, has said the state was currently faced with the problem of structural unemployment, saying available graduates could hardly be absorbed into the civil service.

He also said the state government was, at present, training over 5,000 indigenes of the state in the senior cadre in the Nigeria Army, Police, Immigration, and Air force, among other security outfits in the country.

The governor, who spoke against the backdrop of insinuations that his administration only concentrated on construction of roads and bridges in the last four years against human capital development, said graduates available were trained without focus on contributing to the running of the economy.

He said:  “The state government has tried to employ so many persons, especially in the state civil service.
“But the problem we have is structural unemployment. Graduates are being trained without peculiar focus on whether they can contribute to the running of the economy.”

He said indigenes of the state were also being trained as seafarers at the prestigious Marine Engineering University, Egypt, and School of Aviation, Zaria, Kaduna State.

Elechi, who spoke through the Secretary to the State Government, Chief Fidelis Mbam, noted that a machinery had already been set in motion to ensure bumper rice production in the state as construction of three rice milling centres, one per each senatorial zone, was at an advanced stage of completion.

He said the cement industry of Ebonyi State was recently incorporated and would soon begin production as soon as other essential arrangements were put in place.

“Before the inauguration of this present administration, Ebonyi can only boast of 50 indigenes in the Army and other security outfits in the country. But now we are training over 5000 of them in the Army, Police, and Air Force among others.

“This present administration was able to achieve so much due to prudent spending, not forgetting that the State has a poor revenue base. Without funds you cannot move a State like Ebonyi forward.

“Several scholarship schemes like the HYPAC programme, sponsorship of students from secondary to the University level have continued in the State.

“This administration has been cool headed and cooperative especially in the implementation of budget in every sector,” he said.