Akwa Ibom born Nollywood star, Ini Edo, on Sunday 1st May, 2022 celebrated her 40th birthday with the Women of Onna, her hometown.
40 Women drawn from across the villages and wards in the local government area received seed capital to boost their small scale businesses and other training packages for over 140 women.
Distributing the packages to the women at Onna Council Hall, Ini Edo said she decided to use the occasion of her 40th birthday to identify with the women, and to encourage them to be self-reliant; setting a stage for women and girls through the GEM Africa Initiative to be trained and equipped to proffer local and global solutions across variant sectors of the economy.
The Award-Winning actress who is the Special Assistant on Tourism Development to Governor Udom Emmanuel seeks to use this position to reach thousands of women across Africa.
The GEM Africa Initiative – Girls Empowerment and Mentoring Scheme is poised to discover, train and utilize aspiring female leaders and entrepreneurs for economic advancement and financial liberty.
Reacting, the Chairman of the local government area, Elder Iniabasi Ekanem hailed Ini Edo for her generosity and thoughtfulness, and prayed God to reward her effort.
While acknowledging her exploits in the entertainment industry in the past 20 years, the Onna Council boss described her as a pride to Onna, and indeed Akwa Ibom lauding her strides in the film industry. He congratulated the beneficiaries of Ini Edo’s empowerment packages, and charged them to make judicious use of the funds in growing their businesses.
The event featured folklore, traditional dances, etc.
GEMS AFRICA masterclass 2020 debut engaged a full scale incubator and accelerator programme for girls and women in digital skills where participants were awarded certificates at the end of programme, while others got project based assistance to start a career in digital media /marketing.
In attendance were, the Special Assistant to Governor Emmanuel on Entrepreneurial development, Mrs. Meflyn Anwana; Mr Aniefiok MacauLey, Special Assistant to Governor Emmanuel on media; Mr Sunday Umanah and a cross section of allied organizations.
