2023 Ondo BEMORE Summer Boot Camp Opens With 350 Participants
A total of 350 young secondary school girls arrived the Mabest Academy, Omolayo Estate, Oke-Ijebu, Akure, Ondo State capital on Sunday, August 13 to take part in the two-week-long 2023 BEMORE Summer Boot Camp.
On arrival, the girls went through clearance, documentations and health checks before being ushered into their halls of residence.
The health screening, according to the medical team headed by Dr. Onyema helps to know their physical fitness prior to the camp. The medical screening is also necessary because of the physical exercises which form part of the curriculum at the boot camp.
Like last year’s edition which had eight hearing impaired teen girls as participants, four of such girls led by their matron are participating in this year’s camp while two of the graduands of the programme are returning as ambassadors to help train this year’s ‘special citizens’.
Technical Coordinator of the programme, Bassey Obeten confirmed this to National Newsbreak.
The girls who were drawn from Ondo State and beyond are to be trained in Information, Communication Technology, ICT and solar technology.
They will also be inculcated with life-changing skills such as beads/wig making, cake-baking, tying of gele(headtie), make-up, art, painting and music
They will equally undergo training on confidence-building, taekwando, football and breast cancer detection.
The girls are shared into 17 groups which represent the 17 Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs).
Founder of Bemore Empowered Foundation, organizers of the boot camp and wife of the Ondo State governor, Chief Mrs. Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu expressed happiness at safe arrival of the girls.
Speaking via a video from Karlsruhe, Germany, the elated First Lady prayed for the good health of the girls, expressing confidence in expertise of Dr. Onyema’s team to handle the health challenge (if any) of the girls.
She said; “I hope the girls will not fall sick. Last year’s own was something else. I know Dr. Onyema is always on top of his game”.
The First Lady also enjoined the BEMORE girls who are serving this year as ambassadors to work hard, stressing that the boot camp cannot condone slothfulness and dismal performance.
The boot camp has trained more than 2,000 girls since its inception in 2017. It is planned in a manner that brilliant female teenagers from indigent homes are enrolled into the programme to empower and make them attain their full potentials.
Some of the girls spoken to expressed enthusiasm at being part of programme.
Divine Ihekuna, an indigene of Emeabiam, Owerri West Local Government
Area of Imo State is one of the participants at the boot camp.
Divine is full of expectations as the boot camp takes off. She says she is eager to learn how to design websites and develop apps aimed at solving human challenges.
She is also interested in make-up to ensure any lady she makes up turns up super beautiful.
Tamara Sinatu is from the riverine Ese-Odo Local Government Area of Ondo State. Like Divine, she is also enthusiastic as she arrived at the camp to acquire knowledge in ICT and solar technology as well as other skills.
