By Jude Opara
The people of Dawaki community in Kanke local government area of Plateau have been urged to invest in the development of their hometown to improve the living conditions of their people.
The call was made during the launch of a Back-to-School empowerment initiative and the donation of drugs and medical equipment by an illustrious daughter of the community, Madam Deborah Jan Hornecker.
The District Head of Dawaki, Ngolom Ngas, His Royal Highness, Nde Julius Dimbak Gombwir, commended Hornecker for her commitment to supporting less privileged children and improving access to healthcare.
He urged other privileged members of the community, both at home and abroad, to emulate the gesture and contribute to the sustainable development of the Pwel people.
The royal father encouraged benefiting students to make proper use of the school bags and learning materials provided, and urged the out-of-school children to draw inspiration from the initiative and return to the classroom. The beneficiaries included pupils from LEA Kangpus, LEA Kapil and LEA Lungwa.
At Government Secondary School, Dawaki, the three best-performing students in each class from JSS One to SS Three received scholarships covering their school fees for the current term. The initiative also pledged to cover Junior WAEC examination fees for the three best students in JSS Three and SSCE fees for the three best students in SS Three. All JSS One students received school bags, books, water bottles and writing materials.
In the healthcare sector, medical drugs worth millions of naira, alongside essential medical supplies and test kits, were donated to the Dawaki Primary Health Care Centre to strengthen service delivery.
An additional six hundred thousand naira was provided towards the expansion of the facility. The Chairman of the Pwel Development Association, Dr Samuel Bagas, praised the intervention, describing it as a significant contribution to the wellbeing of the community.
Speaking at the event, the Coordinator of the Back-to-School Empowerment Initiative, Deborah Jan Hornecker, said the programme was designed to support children whose parents could not afford basic educational materials and school uniforms.
She called on well-to-do members of the community to assist the less privileged, stressing that government alone could not meet every societal need. Hornecker also commended the Federal Government’s efforts in the education sector despite prevailing economic challenges.
The initiative’s coordinator also pledged to extend similar empowerment programmes to other communities across Plateau state and Nigeria in general.
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