Benin Electric, EU partner on manpower development

Benin Electricity Distribution plc (BEDC) and Elizade University (EU) have formed an alliance to develop a framework of training workers of the electricity company to acquire engineering and professional know-how to bridge the skills gap in the power industry.

Through the alliance, BEDC has been able to develop a crop of young, energetic and dynamic employees that are now conversant with the problems, challenges and prospects of the power industry.

According to the project co-ordinator, O. A. Oyelana, a professor, the partnership training is to foster innovative research collaboration that can lead to the fabrication and production of light equipment and accessories that are essential for minor routine repairs within the existing power facilities and ultimately to jointly develop alternative renewable energy sources to boost the present level of power generation in the country.

Kunbi Labiyi, chief corporate services officer and facilitator of the training partnership, said: “In line with best practices of great companies, the core investor, Vigeo Power Limited believes that the training of workforce in the industry would improve the performance of BEDC and ultimately build capacity in the newly growing power sector.

“This brought about the decision of the Board to establish a training academy to assist Benin Disco and indeed the power sector in reducing the existing knowledge gap and injecting young workforce into the industry.’’

Funke Osibodu, managing director/CEO, BEDC during the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU), said “Vigeo Power Limited believes that the training of the workforce in the industry would improve the performance of the company and ultimately build capacity in the newly growing power sector.”

The BEDC boss said the trainee programme, the first ever in the electricity supply industry was essentially a part of overall corporate strategy to be an industry leader, adding ‘’we are the first Disco to turn out a set of management trainees who are well rounded, knowledgeable and fit to lead the revolution required to achieve the core objective of the privatisation programme of the Federal Government.”

During the on-the-job training, the graduate trainees were rotated across the various departments of BEDC to gather hands-on experience after which classroom training began. The trainees received trainings in all aspects of power, covering electricity generation, transmission, distribution, repair and maintenance, billing and metering and customer care.

The chief executive of the company, who was represented by Abu Ejoor, the executive director, Commercial, averred that the GTP would provide competent trainees that would satisfy electricity customers’ yearnings in the area of service delivery and management of relationship with customers.

The trainees consisted of three batches of graduates of Engineering, Accounts, Statistics and Mathematics, among who exhibited exemplary conduct during the duration of the training at the university campus in Ilara-Mokin.

This arrangement with BEDC provides more visibility to the university, asking that the initiatives be extended to other Discos, with the university serving as venue for such training.