By Michael Oche
Chartered Institute of Power Engineers of Nigeria (CIPEN) has sought collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Employment to promote professionalism and upscale knowledge and skills within the nation’s power sector.
Engr. Israel Abraham, President of CIPEN, made the request when he led a delegation of the institute on a courtesy visit to the Minister of Labour and Employment.
According to a statement issued by Emameh Gabriel, the Special Adviser on Media to the minister, Mr. Abraham said the institute, established by an Act of Parliament in 2023, is empowered to regulate and determine the standards of knowledge required for practicing power engineering in Nigeria.
“We are here to solicit the cooperation and collaboration of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment in promoting and entrenching professionalism to upscale knowledge and skills and enhance competence and capacity within Nigeria’s power sector,” he said.
Abraham said CIPEN has developed various licenses for different categories of power engineering personnel, and is seeking the ministry’s support in enforcing their adoption.
The CIPEN president also requested the ministry’s support for the inclusion of CIPEN’s qualifications in the National Scheme of Service for the placement of power engineering personnel in the civil service.
“We are confident that a synergy between CIPEN and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment will instil a sense of sanctity, foster professionalism, eradicate mediocrity in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) necessary for driving sectoral performance, and ultimately give birth to a thriving power industry that will exceed the expectations of all Nigerians,” Abraham said.
In her response, the Minister highlighted the dangers of “quackery” in key industries like power and construction. She argued that a lack of qualified professionals is hindering economic growth and even costing lives.
She expressed strong support for the Institute to combat the menace of quackery, noting that the government’s eight-point agenda requires professional expertise to succeed as it is mandatory that only qualified individuals handle essential tasks in key sectors.
She said: “Quackery is part of the reasons our industries are not growing. And if it doesn’t grow, you create dearth in the economy and in the overall output of all we have invested in our industries.
“Every time I come across people seeking to instill discipline in our attitude towards work, I get excited, because I believe we can’t grow with quackery, we can’t grow with imitation and with we turning deaf ears to issues that bedevil national interest.
“We have seen from records that once you put a professional in place with the right mindset and attitude, a positive outcome is certain.
“If you study the 8 point agenda of the president, it was crafted carefully, every point of it has a professional touch and a human face. And there is no way you can bring a human face to bare if you don’t engage a professional to do that.
She assured the delegation of government support to work with the Institute in ensuring that the needed change is brought to the power sector.
