On this significant occasion of the 2025 World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD), I, Hon. Timothy Kalu Iheke, the Executive Chairman of Aba North Local Government Area, proudly align with the global theme, “Empowering Women through Digital Technologies,” by celebrating the milestones already achieved in our dear state under the visionary leadership of His Excellency, Dr. Alex Chioma Otti, OFR.
This year’s theme is a powerful call to close the gender digital divide and ensure women have equal access to the tools, platforms, and opportunities that drive today’s world. Here in Aba North, and indeed across Abia State, that call is already being answered.
The recently concluded TechRise ICT Digital Training Program, a joint initiative between the Abia State Government and our local government, stands as a shining example of how strategic governance can translate global aspirations into local empowerment. Hundreds of participants, including a significant number of women and young girls, were trained in relevant digital skills, from data analysis to software development and digital marketing, equipping them to thrive in the 21st-century economy.
I am particularly proud to report that Governor Alex Otti, in his usual pro-people approach, did not stop at training alone. At the grand finale of the TechRise program, His Excellency awarded automatic employment to several outstanding trainees, both men and women, recognizing the power of talent and commitment irrespective of gender. In addition, 509 brand-new laptops were distributed to empower participants to hit the ground running, while another 850 trainees, many of them women, have been selected for the next training batch.
These actions are not mere promises; they are proof that the Otti-led administration is intentional about empowering women, not just in rhetoric, but in real, measurable terms. We are seeing a deliberate dismantling of barriers that once limited women’s access to digital tools, education, and economic advancement.
As the Executive Chairman of Aba North, I reaffirm our local government’s readiness to continue supporting this digital empowerment agenda. We will keep investing in community ICT centers, expanding digital awareness campaigns, and identifying talented women and girls in our wards who can benefit from future tech programs.
The truth is simple: when you empower a woman digitally, you empower a household. You lift a community. You transform a generation.
Today, I join the global community in celebrating World Telecommunication and Information Society Day. But more importantly, I celebrate the Abia woman — resilient, intelligent, capable, and now, increasingly digitally equipped.
Let us continue to build a society where our mothers, daughters, sisters, and wives are not just passive users of technology, but active creators, innovators, and leaders in the digital space.
Aba North is rising, and our women are at the heart of this digital revolution.
Happy WTISD 2025!
Signed:
Hon. Timothy Kalu Iheke
EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN, ABA NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA
May 17, 2025