By Chika Okeke
The National Automotive Design and Development Council, NADDC, has revamped its activities to enrol at least 1,000 National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, members annually through Compressed Natural Gas, CNG, vehicle retrofitting project.
Director-General of NADDC, Mr Joseph Osanipin disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja, at the inauguration of the CNG Retrofitting Training Programme implemented in partnership with the NYSC.
Executed under the NYSC Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development, SAED, initiative, the programme is designed to equip young Nigerians with skills required for the country’s transition to cleaner energy.
Osanipin noted that the training would assist participants to understand CNG technology, vehicle conversion processes and the operational dynamics of the emerging alternative fuel sector.
He disclosed that the programme would also expose beneficiaries to opportunities in technical services, maintenance, entrepreneurship and other segments of the growing CNG value chain.
In the first phase, 300 corps members will be trained across six locations, with 50 participants selected from each centre for the pilot exercise.
Osanipin stated that the programme would run for three years before a comprehensive review to incorporate lessons learned and emerging developments within the industry, adding that best participants would receive further support, including employment opportunities, entrepreneurship guidance and access to other courses within the CNG ecosystem.
The DG informed that infrastructure and vehicles alone would not drive Nigeria’s energy transition without adequately trained technicians, engineers, entrepreneurs and safety professionals.
He noted that NADDC would collaborate with the NYSC and other stakeholders on competency development, certification, monitoring and continuous improvement of the programme.
Osanipin was confident that the initiative would evolve into a sustainable national platform for building a skilled workforce for Nigeria’s CNG and clean mobility sectors.
The Minister of Youth Development, Mr Ayodele Olawande was optimistic that the programme reflected the government’s commitment to equipping young people with practical and employable skills.
He informed that the initiative would empower participants with skills capable of creating jobs for themselves and generating employment opportunities for others.
The NYSC Director-General, Brig.-Gen. Olakunle Nafiu noted that the programme aligned with the Corps’ objective of reducing youth unemployment through skills acquisition and entrepreneurship development.
Nafiu hinted that the pilot phase would focus on mechanical, electrical and mechatronics engineering graduates, alongside other interested corps members with relevant backgrounds.
The Special Assistant to the President on Youth Initiatives, Dr Titilope Badamosi described the programme as part of efforts to tackle youth unemployment nationwide, saying that 300 corps members would be trained in Abuja, Adamawa, Kano, Lagos, Edo and Enugu states during the pilot phase of implementation.
She said that the beneficiaries would undergo continuous practical training throughout their service year through placements at accredited CNG conversion centres, as the initiative supports the government’s ‘One Youth, Two Skills’ agenda and broader efforts to reduce poverty, unemployment and economic vulnerability among young Nigerians.
