Dangote Group of companies, one of the biggest business conglomerates in Africa says it has trained no fewer than 10,000 employees through the Dangote Academy to address industrial skills gap in Nigeria.
Mr. Victor Edwin, the Group Executive Director, Capital Projects and Portfolio of Dangote Group of companies, stated this during the inauguration of Junior Technician Scheme (JTS) Batch 3 and 4 of the company.
Dangote Academy is an Academy for Learning and Development and creating future pipeline of talent for the Dangote Group, the company says.
As part of efforts to strengthen and develop the nation’s industrial sector, the Dangote Group says the Academy is creating employment opportunities for young graduates through programmes for talent development and a channel for filling the industrial skill-gap in Nigeria and Africa.
According to Edwin, the organization embarked on the 18-month training for the selected students to foster the acquisition of technical skills and leadership ability meant for capacity development and empowerment.
Speaking at the event to induct the new trainees at the Dangote Cement Plant, Obajana, Edwin says that most industries in Nigeria cannot rely solely on universities and colleges of technology to provide the specialised technical and managerial training required to run major modern industrial factories.
“It is, therefore, expected that at the end of the 18-month training, these 100 young Nigerians will become master technicians in any or more of the following areas namely— electrical installation and maintenance, automobile maintenance and instrumentation, welding and fabrication, machining and fitting and mechanical maintenance, ” he adds.