LTC on Focus As it Holds Graduation Award Ceremony

When Chief U.K. Emezi-Mbaise planted a small seed some years back, he had probably never thought the seed will grow into a massive oak tree. What started as a modest one-room business centre few years ago is today transformed into a storey-building.

By the way, London Training Centre, the brainchild of Chief U.K. Emezi Mbaise, started as a one-room business centre in London Corner dedicated to meet the needs of a small clientele, the increased awareness and need for Information Technology. Today, the pioneers of the institute can rise and say even if they die today, they're fulfilled in a way.

Today, LTC, more than ever before, can boast of responding to the man-power needs of the country and even beyond by powering people to be the best they can be.

On Saturday, the Centre hosted a number of personalities from the banking sector, NGO community, the greater public as well as the media at Manjai Lodge in Manjai to partake in its latest graduation and award ceremony.

Speaking at the ceremony which proved an apparent triumph of quality over numbers, LTC director and proprietor, Chief U.K. Emezi-Mbaise, reflects:" London Training Centre started as a one-room business centre in London Corner dedicated to meet the needs of a small clientele, the increased awareness and need of Information Technology. This drove the pioneers to not only offer business services but to train others, as the saying goes, if you give a man some fish you have fed a mouth, teach him how to fish, you have fed a generation. Our venture into training was prompted by Mr Nyang who then as Director of Vocational Education, paused in his stride on his journey home, he said you can do it, I can see the charisma in you people. Come I will guide you; and here we are today sir, you guided us well."

He added: "On commencement, we never rested on our oars. We faced every challenge gallantly and persisted in every challenge. We have instilled in our students the resilience and quest for excellence, which has seen us surge from hitherto a nonentity, to a name to be reckoned with. Today we are graduating students in various fields of academic/vocational discipline of which IT is no exception."

LTC boss thanked the President of The Gambia for creating an enabling environment for the growth of LTC and other institutions of higher learning.

For his part, the deputy Managing Director of Access Bank, Mr Oleka Ojiogo, has emphasised that modern day financial services would not have gone far without Information Technology, adding that information technology systems lie at the heart of every financial services system.

Delivering a lecture on the theme Information Technology and the Financial Sector, Mr Ojiogo pointed out that the theme under discussion was very relevant and interesting, considering the recent activities in The Gambia's financial services sector.

"My bank, Access Bank, could not have achieved much without a robust information technology base. IT as defined by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) is the study, design, development, implementation, support or management of computer hard ware," he stated.

For more on the lecture, see our subsequent editions.

Meanwhile, the graduation ceremony was used to give awards to institutions and personalities that have contributed to the education sector in the country.