The State Government has directed that all operators of hospitality Management outfits including hotels, Inns and guest Houses in the state should conduct mandatory HIV tests for all their employees.

Governor Obiano gave the directive during the closing ceremony of the two-day state EXCO Retreat organized in Awka.
Government House Correspondent, Kenechukwu Ofomah, quotes the Governor Obiano as saying that the measure has become necessary as a proactive step to curb the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the state, revealing that his administration is intensifying HIV/AIDS sensitization campaign in all Primary and Secondary Schools across the state, as a way of equipping the children with the prerequisite knowledge to stay free from the virus.

The Governor while noting that his administration is investing heavily in providing functional and qualitative education to the citizenry, said plans are in progress for a partnership with community leadership to identify and close down all magic centres in the state so as to stem corruption in the state education sector.

He noted that while the ongoing partnership with the church in upgrading schools and Health Institutions will be sustained, a new arrangement is being worked out while the funds which government is providing for the interventions will be effectively monitored to ensure that they are judiciously utilized.

According to him, his interventions in education is to create a viable sector that will train the required manpower that will drive the realization of the four key development pillars and twelve enablers of his administration with a view to transforming the state.

In a status Implementation Review of the Education Enabler, the Commissioner for Education, Professor Kate Omenugha, said the education initiative under the present administration is being approached holistically in a manner that will ensure that the learning needs of Ndi Anambra are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life-sustaining skills.

Professor Omenugha revealed that the present administration has revitalized the community Education Resource centre, a partnership project with the Education Trust Fund.

She noted that in its bid to ensure quality in the sector, the state government has made it a policy not to recruit any teacher that is not computer literate while effective key performance monitoring system have been introduced to evaluate the impact of the teachers’ performance with a view to identifying areas of gap and retooling.

The Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Dr. Uju Nwogu, observed that despite governments’ heavy spending in repositioning the state education sector, the image of the state continue to be smeared by operators of magic and miracle centres through examination malpractice, stressing the need for decisive action against such perpetrators.

In a summary, the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Solo Chukwulobelu, described education as central to the achievement of sustainable transformation in all key sectors of the state economy.