By; FUNMI ADERINTO, Kaduna
The acting Governor of Kaduna State, Dr. Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe, on Tuesday, said that the 24 of the Fifth Cohort Of Kashim Ibrahim Fellows are young persons who have been appointed to important responsibilities as part of duties to create platforms to create opportunities for the next generation.
Dr. Hadiza Sabuwa, stated this at the inauguration of Fifth Cohort of Kashim Ibrahim Fellows, held at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House in Kaduna.
According to her, the 24 set of fellows will commence their one-year leadership training programme which involves emersion into the Kaduna State Governance machinery alongside other activities designed to support their intellectual development and expand their understanding of public service and leadership.
The acting Governor expressed delight, saying, “It is nice to see you physically. The last time you were unveiled, you were online. So now I can see your faces. So, you are welcome to Kaduna.
“It is indeed an honour and I feel privileged to be the one to welcome you formally to Kaduna, 24 young men and women of this very important cohort”.
She admonished them, “you know you have been selected by merit through a competitive process from a pool of many applicants all across the nation. So, you should count yourselves lucky being here.
“You put in your best and your best paid off, but now is the beginning of a bigger journey.”
The acting governor explained that, “Four sets of cohorts that have preceded you, you will now begin your emersion in our governance machinery alongside other activities, designed to support your intellectual development and expand understanding of public service and leadership.”
Dr. Balarabe assured them that, “you can count on our active support and nurturing as you navigate the next 12 months.
“The Kaduna State Government, the governing board and the administrator of the Kashim Ibrahim Fellowship are all committed to making your fellowship the most transformative experience in building public service leadership capacity”.
Explaining further, she said, the Kashim Ibrahim Fellowship is a logical extension of the careful attention the Kaduna State Government pays to developing young people.
“Our fellows will find their peers in many of our agencies.
“These are young persons who have been appointed to important responsibilities as part of our duties to create platforms to create opportunities for the next generation.
“As you formally resume for the one-year fellowship, I challenge you to give in your best in every facet of the programme.
“I heard some of you saying that for the past two weeks, you have learnt punctuality. Punctuality is a way of life in Kaduna.
“This is what the attitude of the investment being made in you deserves. Beyond that, the commitment to strive for the best, to focus and to deliver quality are key ingredients of leadership capacity.
“It requires conscious efforts and application,” she said.
She thanked all members of the Governing Board for the job of running the Kashim Ibrahim Fellowship Programme.
“The Steering Committee continues to do an excellent job in helping the Governing Board in running the programme and I thank all members for their efforts,” she added.
It would be recalled that, Kashim Ibrahim Fellows is a programme established in 2018 as “the logical extension of the careful attention the Kaduna State Government pays to developing young people”.
The latest fellows emerged through vigorous selection process, with 15 states in Nigeria represented and commenced on February 15, 2022.
A call for applications submission deadline ended on March 14, 2022, with 1, 855 applications received, with 684 making it to next stage and 331 making it to the third stage.
The steering committee then reviewed 331 to 154 to make video submissions, the top 58 were virtually interviewed.and 50 of them were selected for the consideration of the governing board.
The board accept them and selected the top 24 cohort candidates, who now form the fifth set of Kashim Ibrahim Fellows.
They comprise of 12 female and equal number of male, with Kaduna State represented by both sexes.
