The State Coordinator of the Nigeria Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES), Chief Henry Egbelo, has declared that the programme will accept nothing less than a top-three finish for the State. He made this known during an expanded meeting of Heads of delivery platforms and technical staff from all NG-CARES projects, held at the State CARES Coordinating Office, 31/32 School Road, State Housing Estate, Calabar.
Chief Egbelo affirmed that under his coordination, only the first or second position in Nigeria is acceptable for the State. He described this goal as achievable and encouraged staff to gear up for the task ahead.
Speaking on strategies to meet the target, Egbelo stated that improving staff welfare is fundamental to achieving the desired results, especially given that the State has already secured a favourable position and is currently leading in southern Nigeria.
He acknowledged that the competence, capabilities, and track records of staff across delivery platforms mean that what is required now is proper motivation, matched with the right technology, to achieve satisfactory results. He charged Heads of delivery platforms to monitor their staff and ensure timely performance of duties, while promising that staff would receive support in the form of necessary work equipment to enhance effective and efficient service delivery.
Egbelo further noted that issues such as training, provision of laptops, logistics, and team bonding are essential for collective growth. He assured that an enabling environment would be provided to boost staff morale in relation to their job schedules and performance.
In an interview with some participants, Dr. Innocent Odey, an accountant with NG-CARES, expressed satisfaction with the engagement, citing the attendance, robust agenda, and staff comportment as evidence of the meeting's success. He added that more good times are coming, and that the reward for hard work is more work.
Also speaking, Dr. Mrs. Esther Awa from the Community and Social Development Agency described the meeting as very important, viewing it as a significant milestone for the programme’s success from the national office perspective. Meanwhile, the Head of Operations, SOCU, Mr. Godwin Ador, simply noted that the outcome and ambience of the meeting indicate that NG-CARES 2.0 will be far better than Version 1.0.
A highlight of the meeting was the presentation of reports by the Heads of delivery platforms. In attendance were all Heads of projects and all technical staff from the various platforms under NG-CARES.
By Iloke Egbe
