The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of an Oil and Gas firm, Flamingo Energy and Innovations Nigéria Ltd, Port Harcourt Rivers State, Maxwell Atago says the HydroCarbon Pollution and Remediation Project (HYPREP) Livelihood Support Programme in Ogoni land if sustained has the capacity to reduce youth restiveness, pipeline vandalisation and illegal oil bunkering activities in the area.
Speaking to newsmen after supervising the qualifying examinations and graduation of 80 Ogoni youths trained in Crane Operations under the HYPREP Livelihood Support Programme in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Atago lamented the inadequacy of skilled manpower in the oil and gas industry in the country and commended HYPREP for taking up the opportunity to scale up in such sophisticated areas as electrical instrumentation, Safety and Rigging operations among other areas of needs in the industry stressing that the programme would reduce the yawning gap in manpower development and as well curtail youth restiveness in Ogoni land.
“By the time these training programes are done by HYPREP, the yawning gap would be reduced and the era of youths restiveness in Ogoni land would be a thing of the past because most youths in Ogoni would have been engaged”, Atago stated.
The MD equally commended the participants for their commitments and dedications during the six months Programme, stating that the youths were not only trained in Crane Operations but on how to be able to set up their independent businesses in Crane Operations and as well access global employment opportunities in their areas of training.
According to him, the skill training programme which took the participants through the rudiments of Crane Operations technology was conducted by J. Bundeb Sylmar Associates Limited in conjunction with Flamingo Energy and Innovations Ltd, owners of the training facilities located in Port Harcourt.
Atago who called on other organizations and individuals operating in the oil and gas industry to take advantage of available facilities in his company to impart and improve the skills of their workers equally urged Ogoni youths to take advantage of the opportunity of the skill trainings provided by HYPREP to improve their lives.
Head, Livelihood and Sustainable Development, HYPREP, Mrs. Josephine Nzidee who oversees the programme said the programe was one of the key mandates of HYPREP aimed at providing alternative means of livelihood to the people of Ogoni Land.
According to her, over 5000 youths and women who were selected through a transparent processes adopted by HYPREP were currently undergoing trainings in twenty different skills in various organizations adding that the skill trainings has helped most of the people to acquire new skills and also improved the human capacity in the area.
Mrs. Nzedee described the commitments and dedications exhited by the trainees in the facility as reassuring and commended the management of J. Bundeb Sylmar Associates for meeting up with the requisite Federal Government criteria for the training programes of HYPREP.
The HYPREP representative appealed to the beneficiaries of training programme to use the skills learnt and the life values acquired from the training to make the next step in life emphasising that the quality of the Certificate issued to the trainees at the end of the programe will enable them to be self employed and can equally secure lucrative employment opportunities in local and international organisations.
Some of the trainees Paul Ebie from Alesa Eleme, Sampson Promise Alale and Ajuri Olukpe who spoke to newsmen expressed satisfaction with the quality of the training programme in the facility adding that the skill acquired will change their livelihood and dissuade them from engaging in illegal oil bunkering activities in the area.
