Dangote Refinery pledges commitment to host community

Dangote Oil Refinery has reassured of its commitment to working closely with its host community, particularly in the area of training and provision of job opportunities for youths in the areas of operations.

The company’s Group Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Projects and Portfolio Development, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, while speaking during the commencement of a skills acquisition programme for another batch of youths in Ibeju-Lekki community in Lagos State, said that the programme was aimed at curbing unemployment among the youths.

Edwin explained that the rationale behind the training, apart from fostering better relations with the host community, was also meant to take the young people from the area away from the labour market.

He cited the programme which cuts across a wide range of vocational skills to include welding, electrical technician, plumbing, auto mechanic, radio and television repairs, refrigerator and AC repairs, building and furniture making.

Edwin disclosed that the initiative was in line with the vision of the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, to provide employment opportunities for youths, especially those found within the company’s host communities.

He maintained that addressing Nigeria’s unemployment crisis requires providing platforms for youths to learn various vocational trades that would enable them to develop themselves and also become employers of labour.

“We know that there are a lot of graduates out there looking for jobs and that is why you should focus and take this training by the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) seriously.

“We will train you; we will equip you, and also ensure that you will be employable or become entrepreneurs,” he advised the beneficiaries.

Many indigent youths in Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos State who are beneficiaries from the first batch of the vocational training programme organised by Dangote Oil Refinery, also applauded the organisation.

Some of the youths who took part in the first batch of the programme which started in 2019, revealed that they had secured jobs with the company, while the others noted that they were doing well in their various trades.

One of the beneficiaries, Mr Balogun Owolabi, of Epe local government, stressed that the training he acquired in refrigerator and air conditioner repair from the Dangote Refinery vocational training programme had transformed his life and that of his family members.

Owolabi added that the company offered him employment at the project site few months after graduating from the vocational training.

He called on other youths in the community who are feeling reluctant to participate in the training programme to make themselves available because they stand to benefit so much from the programme.