This year’s edition of the one-month Nigerian Indigenous Language Programme (NILP), a core cultural orientation platform of National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO), which started Monday, 3rd August, 2015, in the South-South Zonal Office, alongside other NICO offices nationwide, has ended on Thursday, 27th August, 2015.
Addressing participants to mark the end of this year’s NILP exercise in the zone, the South-South Zonal Office, Director, Mr. Ebi Nelson Campbell, appreciated them as well as the resource persons, who committed and involved themselves in the profitable exercise, noting that, the performance both in the tests and examinations set for them was commendable.
He stated that being part of such a programme, which is centred on learning and speaking Nigerian indigenous languages other than one’s own, was of immense benefit as language was an instrument of promoting peaceful co-existence and national unity.
While presenting certificates of participation to the participants, Campbell charged them to keep them safely, as testimonials of their hard work and contribution to the promotion of Nigerian indigenous languages, and encouraged them to always practice speaking of the languages they had learnt, both at home and at their places of work, as that will help them to improve gradually.
He also encouraged them to go a step further by attending the diploma or postgraduate diploma in Cultural Administration programmes at NICO Training School, either in Lagos or Abuja, to get in-depth knowledge of our rich culture and come out as very knowledgeable cultural administrators.
Speaking on behalf of the participants, Mr. Victor Degi from Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) commended NICO for initiating the language programme and enjoined the Executive Secretary, Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma, and his Management team to continue with the good work, in saying, ‘No’ to our indigenous languages going into extinction.
In a vote of thanks, the programme coordinator in the zone, Gloria Ephraim, who was also one of the resource persons, appreciated participants and urged them to also enrol for further studies in NICO’s Weekend Indigenous Language Programme, another platform of the Institute’s NILP.
Nigerian indigenous languages taught in NICO South-South zone this year, which drew participants from Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA), NYSC Corps members, and students as well as members of staff of NICO, included Efik, Hausa, Igbo, Izon, and Yoruba; and the resource persons were all members of staff of NICO from the zonal office.
Clifford Ugwu
Corporate Affairs
NICO SSZ