It’s a cheering news for the former Commissioner for Youth and Sports development in Kwara State ,Joana Nnazua Kolo as Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara State hinted his decision to send her to United Kingdom for further studies.
www.owosports.com.ng. can reports.
Kolo, who was famous for being appointed as the youngest commissioner in history of the State and Nigeria was
appointed in 2019 immediately after finishing her mandated National Youth Service Corps(NYSC).
The youth advocate hails from Edu local government in Kwara State and the Ministry of youth and sports under her reign witnessed a lot of progress among which was the resuscitation of the Kwara State Sports festival after over a decade of abandonment.
In an interview published by Thisday newspapers on October 17 , Governor Abdulrahman claimed that he had to wait till she finished her youth service corp for her swearing-in, after he had insisted that he wanted a woman to be commissioner from Edu local government.
The Governor, noted that against the common stereotypes, women are efficient and productive in the discharge of their duties.
“I don’t even know many of them personally. The constituencies throw them up. When we chose the youth corps members who was our youngest commissioner then- she’s from Edu local government and a Christian. They brought several names to me , but I said I want a woman. They came up and said the only woman we have will finish her youth service next month. I said bring her, we will wait till next month to swear her in . The community brought her. May be it was deliberate to show that she is in youth service, but we embraced her. And she’s done well”. Says the Governor in the media chat with the Thisday newspapers.
The Governor who is reputed and acknowledged to be an advocate of gender equality said Kolo wouldn’t only be sent for master’s degree in United Kingdom but will be mentored as a potential leader.
“She is not in the cabinet any more. We are sponsoring her for a master’s programme in the UK. She’s had the experience but we have also prepare her for the future. She’s had this experience. What next? We will mentor her”.
Joana Nnazua Kolo is believed to be the youngest commissioner in the history of Nigeria. She was a 2018 graduate of Library Science of Kwara State University, Kwara State and served in Jigawa State, where she taught at Model Boarding Junior Secondary School Guri.
The cabinets under which Kolo served were sworn in on December 14, 2019 and dissolved on December 1st 2020.
The state executive council then comprised of at least 56.25% female, in what was remarkably the most gender-friendly cabinet on the African continent.