Pecohub Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, at the weekend, said that his administration had deliberately allocated over 30 per cent of the yearly budget to education in the past three years to transform the state into a knowledge-based economy.
He explained that the state is already reaping the benefits of the massive investment, with the growing student population in academic institutions.
The governor spoke at the 43rd to 50th Consolidated Convocation of the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu.
A total of 27,848 graduates of Ordinary National Diploma (OND) and Higher National Diploma (HND) programmes within the span of eight years participated in the combined convocation.
Mbah, who was represented by his Deputy, Ifeanyi Ossai, noted that the state government would continue to support educational growth in all ramifications.
He commended the institute and its management for the innovations and initiatives to rebrand and reposition the institute, adding that the government would continue to support the advancement of learning and infrastructure in IMT.
Meanwhile, youth innovators, at the weekend, won big at the maiden edition of the Enugu State-backed Campus Hackathon competition.
The Campus Hackathon is an innovation platform to consolidate the state’s place as a rising hub for youth-led digital enterprise and venture creation in line with the Enugu State Digital Transformation Strategy.
The governor of the state, Dr Peter Mbah, who witnessed the grand finale, described the initiative as part of his administration’s bold innovation drives to move the state from a consumption-driven economy to a productivity-led economy.
Speaking during the grand finale, which was held at the International Conference Centre, Enugu, Mbah described the youths as the heartbeat of a knowledge-driven and digital economy.
In the main category of the hackathon, which was delivered in collaboration with Genesys Tech Hub, The Garage, and Capitis Global Ventures, Growdex, an AI-powered advertising automation platform that enables creators and businesses to create, publish, and optimise ads across multiple channels from a single dashboard, won the star prize of $5,000 in investment grant.
Zaddy Express, a tech-enabled logistics and on-demand delivery platform that delivers fast, reliable, last-mile solutions for individuals and businesses, came second and won a $3,500 investment grant.
Linia Finance, a fintech platform providing accessible, data-driven credit and financial tools to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and underserved individuals, came third and got a $2,500 investment grant.
