ABIODUN SETTLES PENSIONERS’ 2017 GRATUITY

The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun has directed immediate payment of year 2017 Gratuity to retirees who fell into the category.

The Permanent Secretary, Bureau of State Pensions, Mrs. Arinola Adetayo, said the payment would bring succor and relief to the senior citizens in this present socio - economy challenges in the country, saying the Bureau had since commenced the payment to the 840 affected retirees in accordance with the directives of the State Governor.

 Adetayo said that the present administration was committed to the welfare and well-being of the senior citizens, appreciating Prince Dapo Abiodun for his love, care and heartfelt concerns towards the retirees, appealing to those who are yet to get theirs to be patient with the government.

In his reaction, the State Chairman, Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), Comrade Waheed Oloyede expressed gratitude to the State Government for releasing N6.5 billion gratuity to State and Local Government Pensioners.

Com. Oloyede represented by the Union's Secretary, Com. Bola Lawal thanked the State Government for fulfilling the promises made to the Pensioners to be able to afford basic needs, healthcare and enjoy improved quality of life in their retirement.

One of the beneficiaries, Mr. Dele Odunsi, praised the Almighty God for sparing their lives to receive the fruits of their labour while alive and thanked the Governor for keeping his promise.

                                      

Sururat Odusanya,

Information and Public Relations Officer, Bureau of State Pensions

OGSG PARTNERS WHO, UNICEF, JHPIEGO, OTHERS TO ENHANCE HEALTHCARE ACCESS FOR MOTHERS, NEWBORNS

‎ In its continued effort and commitment to enhancing healthcare access particularly for mothers and newborns, the Ogun State Government in collaboration with World Health Organisation (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Johns Hopkins Programme for International Education in Gynecology and Obstetrics (JHPIEGO) and other development partners has emphasised its readiness to implement evidence-based policies that will prioritise the health and well-being of the people of the State.

‎ Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker made this known while speaking during a One Day Comprehensive Emergency Obstetrics and Newborn Care (CEmONC) Assessment Dissemination Agenda at the Governor's Office, Oke-Mosan Abeokuta.

‎ Dr. Coker said the programme was commissioned by the coordinating Minister, Dr. Ali Pate for every State to give room for interventions in secondary facilities where it was needed especially in Obstetrics and Neo- Natal units under the Sector Wide Approach Programme(SWAP).

"Well trained selected Medical Record Officers have gone round all the 20 Local Government Areas and had assessed at least one general hospital to determine the State of their Obstetrics and NeoNatal care, looking into infrastructure, equipment and health workers status and the reports of this assessment would be the baseline we are building upon to ensure Ogun State is well positioned to deliver quality healthcare services to mothers and their babies, " she added.

In their contributions, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Kayode Oladehinde and his counterpart from the Hospitals Management Board, Dr. Olayinka Elemide noted that the CEmONC initiative would empower the secondary health facilities in the State to give adequate health care to mothers and their newborns and this would help reduce mortality rate to the barest minimum.

‎ In their separate goodwill messages, representatives of WHO, Dr. Akinolu Fatiregun and UNICEF, Pharmacist Florence Molokwu as well as from JHPIEGO, Dr. Elizabeth Chukwu remarked on the potential impact of the assessment findings which aims to identify gaps in existing health services and propose actionable solutions.

‎ Also speaking, the representatives of the development partner’s added that investing in quality maternal and neonatal health services does not only save lives but also contributes to the broader developmental goals of the society.

‎ Contributing, CEmONC focal person, Dr. Ismaila Afolabi while reeling out the findings on the assessment of the facilities mentioned that, some facilities lacked necessary equipments, some have but do not make use of them, saying few lapses were discovered from the part of some medical personnel which would be worked upon as a matter of urgency.

‎ The Ogun State SWAP Desk Officer, Dr. Olamide Agunbiade explained that the reason behind the SWAP project with CEmONC and Jhpiego who helped in funding the assessment, was to bring all key stakeholders in health sector including partners together to tackle issues bothering health sector in order to improve health indices.

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Adeyinka Elujoba & Femi Osipitan,

Information and Public Relations Officers, Min. of Health & HMB

OGSG CHARGES INFORMATION MANAGERS TO EMBRACE EMERGING TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

Information and Public Relations Officers in Ogun State have been charged to embrace emerging technologies as modern skill needed to make them more relevant and advanced in their Information gathering and dissemination for effective job delivery.

          Ogun State Head of Service, Mr. Kehinde Onasanya, gave the charge at a-day training, organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Information Chapel in collaboration with Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB), with the themed "Advancing Information Dissemination through Emerging Technologies.

   Mr. Onasanya emphasised the importance of adapting to new technologies to remain relevant in the profession, urging officers to be prompt and strategic in their communication, utilising tools such as social media platforms, content management systems, and data visualisation tools to effectively disseminate information.

The Head of Service stressed the need for timeliness and accuracy in communication, noting that well-crafted stories or reports lose their value if they arrive late or were misreported.

He encouraged IPROs to be creative and in-depth in their reportage, highlighting the importance of feature stories in promoting accountability.

          Onasanya, pointed out that, the efforts of Governor Dapo Abiodun on technology advancement was remarkable which had yielded results in terms of blocking leakages in revenue generation through OG tax , seamless land documentation through OLARMS among others, saying information managers must support the efforts of Government by disseminating its policies through the emerging technology tools to inform the larger population across State.

          Special Adviser to Governor on Public Communication, Mr. kayode Akimade, represented by Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mr. Waheed Adesina, reiterated Government's commitment to Advancing the workforce through technology, saying that most needed tech tools would further be provided for government Information managers for effective discharge of their duties.

          Speaking, Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Prof. Kehinde Babatunde, represented by Deputy Vice Chancellor (Development), Prof. Mufutau Atayese, commended Ogun State government for powering such training for its workers especially Information Managers, noting that a lot of its policies had been disseminated through various channels, but more could be achieved through usage of emerging technologies such as social media, AI, among others.

          One of the resource persons, Special Adviser on Information Communication Technology (ICT), Mr. Dayo Abiodun, said (IPRO) must stay ahead in the world of digitalisation in order to reposition analogical ways of information dissemination, noting digital literacy as a starting point.

          Abiodun, represented by Director, Standard Regulations, Planning and Research, Bureau of Information Technology (BIT) Mrs. Olatundun Adekunte, highlighted various emerging technologies skills which would enhance effective information dissemination such as; desktop publishing, graphics designs, social media navigation, cloud- based activities among others, calling on Information and Public Relations Officers, managing the image of government to master all of the skills and put it into use in the discharge of their duties.

          He further stated that the theme was relevant in today's rapidly evolving digital world, where communication channels were changing at an unprecedented pace , making it crucial for government information handlers to master the use of Artificial Intelligence, Google, Twitter, Threads, Instagram for timeliness and accessibility which were the cornerstone of information dissemination.

In his welcome address, the Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Ogun State Information Chapel, Comrade 'Femi Osipitan, noted that capacity building remains the only way to go for better productivity, while he enjoined officers to continually and constantly strive to operate from the centre of knowledge.

Osipitan noted that the Chapel's leadership is committed to prioritizing training and retraining for members in order to support Government efforts and enhance the quality of information dissemination, saying a well-informed citizenry is crucial for making better decisions, and well-trained information managers are essential for achieving this goal, while adding that in today's digital age, it is imperative that officers are proficient in the use of latest ICT gadgets and applications to disseminate information effectively and efficiently

One of the participants, Mrs Akinpelu Funmilola applauded the leadership of the Chapel for the timely training saying that the training was an eye opener to the new paradigms in leveraging emerging technologies in information gathering and dissemination for Information and Public Relations Officers.

Olayinka Ezema & Segun Owotomo

Information and Public Relations Officers BIT & PHCDB

LEVERAGE ON MEDIA POWER TO PROMOTE ECONOMY - OGUN NEPC BOSS

The Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has called on Nigeria Media Practitioners to leverage their power in promoting the activities of the Council, as media plays pivotal role in projecting of the Nigeria economy to the outside world.

The State Coordinator of Nigeria Export Promotion Council, Mrs. Olajumoke Abolaji, gave the charge while addressing Information and Public Relations Officers at the Governor's Office, Press Centre, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.

Delivering her lecture titled, "Roles of the Media in Promoting Nigeria's Export Promotion Council and its activities", said the media plays the role of projecting and disseminating of information to the targeted audience, hence the need for the synergy between Media and her Agency to help in ensuring that the activities of the agency get to the wider audience on non-oil sector of the economy, soliciting for media involvement in NEPC activities and programmes to boost and increase export businesses.   

 She noted that the era of Nigeria over dependent on oil sector was over, saying that the economy was now tilting towards the non-oil sector which anyone could start with less capital, explaining that agricultural produce like Cassava, Cashew nuts, Cocoa as well as strategic products like Adire, Vegetables and Ofada rice could be packaged and exported to another country which would in turn boost the Nigerian economy.

 The NEPC boss stated that each State in Nigeria had State Committee on Export Promotion (SCEP), which plays advisory roles to export industries in Nigeria, adding that the export business was open to everyone, especially women, youths and physically challenged.

Contributing, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olu Ola Aikulola, who doubles as the SCEP Chairman, said the role of media in promoting agricultural value chain to outside world cannot be over-emphasised, thereby, calling for the need to promote the activities of the agency.

Dr. Aikulola revealed that non-oil export was a pocket friendly business which anyone could venture into irrespective of age.

 Reacting, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Information Chapel, Mr. Femi Osipitan, represented by his Vice, Mrs. Bolaji Abiodun, appreciated the speakers, saying the lecture was an eye-opener to another stream of income in agriculture which could boost finances, while appealing to members to reflect on the benefits of the lecture.