The minister of power, works and housing, Babatunde Fashola, has stated that the target of 10,000 megawatts (mw) by 2019 will not be realised except skilled manpower needs are addressed in the sector.
Fashola, who emphasised that design, building of plant, its operation and maintenance, can only be carried out by key skilled manpower, underscored the role of the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN), in the realisation of the 10,000mw target.
Speaking during a ceremony for graduating trainees under the NAPTINS Graduate Skills Development Programme (NGSDP), the minister urged the trainees to brace up to this challenge by developing positive attitude that would enable them to be creative in solving the myriad of problems responsible for the lack of access to power by many Nigerians.
Represented by the permanent secretary, Power, Mr Louis Edozien, Fashola said that there will soon be executive actions on issues around renewable energy, coal, embedded generation and the need for a workable training policy for the NAPTIN. He also informed that the government was looking at the quest for making the NAPTIN a citadel of quality learning with its proposed post-graduate degree programmes.
Speaking earlier, the director-general of the NAPTIN, Mr Reuben Okeke, had requested the minister to help fast-track the plan to incorporate the training of lower cadre personnels, similar to the now rested National Power Apprenticeship Scheme (NAPSAS) in the sector, to complement the trained engineers that are primarily the focus of the institute.
