By Prince Okafor

As part of its effort to support the improvement of technical education in Nigeria, Nigeria’s Electricity Distribution Company, Ikeja Electric (IE), has upgraded the Electrical Workshop of Government Technical College (GTC) in Ikorodu, Lagos State.

The company noted that the gesture was aimed at boosting technical education in the state, while complementing the efforts of the government through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

Speaking during the commissioning ceremony, IE Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ikeja Electric, Folake Soetan noted that the company remains passionate about giving back to communities where it operates.  

In her words: “We care about our customers and we look for every opportunity to support them, through our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) platform, which has touched thousands of lives positively.

“We acknowledge the efforts of Federal, State and Local Governments in providing quality education for our children and raising the future leaders of tomorrow. No doubt, the responsibility being handled by government is huge and demand is enormous. Government cannot do it all alone. That is why private organisations like Ikeja Electric throw their weight behind initiatives that support government and drive development.

”At IE we give back to the societies where we operate. Therefore, in line with our commitment towards education, we decided to rehabilitate the Electrical Workshop at Government Technical College (GTC), Ikorodu, in order to further enhance technical capacity building and create a conducive learningenvironment for the students.”

Speaking further, Soetan noted that the philanthropic gesture demonstrated IE’s commitment to the goal of promoting quality education. “There’s no doubt that education is the bedrock of development for any nation. Clearly, when technical skills are encouraged among young people, it helps a nation to develop in terms of technology, economy, manpower, self-sustenance, creation of job and reduction of unemployment.”

In her remark, the Lagos State Commissioner for Education, Mrs. Folashade Adefisayo, who was represented by Dr Funke Oyetola, Director of Policy, Planning, Research and Statistics in the Lagos State Education Ministry, expressed gratitude to the Disco for contributing towards improving the facility and adding value to the school while encouraging them to partner more with the State.

She commended the exemplary gesture by IE, noting that the impact will definitely be meaningful to the recipients because the quality of learning will improve thereby enhancing capabilities and potentials of the students for future challenges.

Similarly, the Executive Secretary of Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board (LASTVEB, Ms. Moronke Azeez thanked the Disco. She said the mission of the Board was to provide industry response and gender inclusive technical and vocational education. According to her, the Board was not only interested in the training of the students but was also engaging technical partners to help create startups and employment opportunities for them.

She said the State currently had about 400 partners involved in the exercise, adding that there was need for more private sector support of technical and vocational education in the state.

The Principal of Government Technical College, Ikorodu, Mrs. Kenku Adedoyin also applauded Ikeja Electric for expending resources and time in order to impact on the lives of students and teachers. According to her, the students feel very comfortable in the workshop, they are excited to learn because of the conducive environment.

“Therefore, we want to express our gratitude to Ikeja Electric for being our partner in progress in nurturing and supporting the talents that will graduate from this College. We want to reassure them that we will maintain it. And we believe you hear positive news about our students,” she said.