By Archibong Emmanuel
The Special Adviser to Governor Bassey Otu on local content, Ambassador Awatt Caleb, has confirmed the government’s readiness to train citizens in the maintenance, repair, and manufacturing of electric vehicles, including electric buses, cars, and Keke Napep.
Awatt said 100 youths drawn across the 18 local government areas will benefit from the free training programme under the “Local Content Vosep Initiative”.
Ambassador Awatt hinted to the press that the programme is part of a broader vision aimed at empowering young, talented youths with the technical skills needed to prepare Cross River State for the growing adoption of renewable energy and green transportation.
“One of the biggest challenges in the coming years will be who services electric vehicles in Cross River State when they develop faults. Through this programme, we are preparing our youths to fill that critical gap,” he stated.
Ambassador Awatt explained that as electric vehicles gradually make inroads into the Cross River automobile market, it was important to ensure the state was not left behind in terms of technical expertise and manpower.
Awatt said the programme will commence in June to prepare young Cross Riverians to take advantage of the fast-emerging opportunities in the renewable energy and green transportation sector, presented by the people-first government of Senator Prince Bassey Edet Otu’s administration.
According to him, “The training will target 100 engineering students of Cross River origin for the training.”
He added that a partnership with Innoson vehicle and other automotive companies will ensure our local manpower exists to support the use of electric vehicles in the state.
“Today, if you drive past 20 vehicles in the city capital, you are likely to see at least one electric vehicle. Like every other car, it will require servicing at some point, and the critical question is: Who will fix it when it develops faults?” Awatt said.
To meet this requirement, the local content office is ready to upskill our youths in the automotive sector on the safe handling of high-voltage systems in electric and hybrid vehicles.
Having such a training programme in place will, in turn, set industry standards and also enable more skilled technicians from Cross River to be readily available as the people’s first government of Senator Bassey Otu works towards a more sustainable future for the youths.
The programme is powered by Japanese auto repair engineers in partnership with the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC).
