Cross River State Governor Bassey Otu has charged 1,500 graduates of retiree training programmes to transform themselves into entrepreneurs and ambassadors of enterprise rather than merely flaunting their certificates as recipients of knowledge.

The governor made this call during the graduation ceremony of the Cross River State Microfinance Enterprise Development Agency (MEDA) held at the Calabar International Convention Center. The event marked the completion of basic, advanced, and Retiree Entrepreneurship Development Initiative (REDI) programmes designed to prepare retirees and those approaching retirement for life after service.

Represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Anthony Owan-Eno, Governor Otu emphasized that the entrepreneurial path aligns with his administration's vision of transforming Cross River into a state where citizens think innovatively and embrace business ventures.

"You can achieve better and be better. Today, after retirement comes life, hope and self-belief in what you can be because retirement in Cross River is now an announcement of good things," the governor stated.

Otu highlighted his administration's preference for empowering citizens to become business owners rather than fostering dependency on government employment. He urged the retirees to view retirement as the beginning of another productive phase of life and challenged them to change the narrative of business ownership in the state.

"In Cross River, the time of unemployment is gone. The time when grown graduate children depended on their parents for handouts is gone. This is the time for self actualization," he declared.

The event featured Dr. Tope Fasua, Special Adviser to the President on Economic Affairs in the Office of the Vice President, who spoke on "The Role of MSMEs in Innovation, Change and Economic Growth."

Adding cultural flair to the ceremony, the retirees performed traditional dances including the Moninkim and Ekombi dance from the central and southern districts, as well as the War Dance from the northern district of Cross River State.