13 May 2013, Abuja – The National Power Training Institute of Nigeria, NAPTIN, Abuja, says it would be training over 5,000 engineers and craftsmen for the power sector.
Mr Reuben Okeke, Director-General of NAPTIN, who disclosed this, said the institute had been so directed by Minister of Power, Prof Chinedu Nebo.
He told the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja, Sunday, that the training programme, which would run for the next five years, would commence immediately.
The mandate would enable NAPTIN to remain focused, while improving upon the feats it had achieved so far, he said.
Okeke said that the minister’s directive would specifically ensure that the institute trained at least 5,000 engineers and almost the same number of craftsmen and artisans within the next five years.
According to him, the essence of the training was to prepare the power sector for privatisation as well as the Power Reform Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
Okeke stressed that due to these factors, the Federal Government had provided training equipment for NAPTIN, while building additional classrooms for the institute to accommodate more students.
He said that that NAPTIN would soon get approval from the Head of Service to employ about 118 instructors, who had five to 10 years’ working experience in the sector, to facilitate the training programme.
Okeke said that the craftsmen that would be trained included electrical fitters, linesmen and cable jointers.
Others are those who climb electricity poles, as well as those who rectify electrical faults, maintain equipment and change transformers’ oil.