FG, foundation to empower 5,000 NYSC members on solar technology

Orelope-Adefulire made the call during an online virtual commencement of a free training on Solar Technology for Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), NYSC members, by Wurvicat Solar Foundation on Sunday.

She said this would help to tackle environmental challenges and unemployment.

According to her, more people around the world live in urban areas, hence the high greenhouse gas emissions leading to over reliance on fossil fuels, and resulting in excess pollution.

She expressed worry that rapid and unplanned urbanisation had remained the cause of myriad of obstacles to economic, social and environmental sustainability of cities in developing countries.

Orelope-Adefulire, however, noted that governments alone could not bridge the huge energy infrastructure deficit, and commended Wurvicat for the gesture which she said would empower youths to take up the challenge of clean energy provision.

She pledged the commitment of the Federal Government to support the training and startup initiative for trainees, to address both unemployment and clean power generation needs of the country.

“Sustainable energy production and use can be enhanced by encouraging energy efficiency and the promotion of energy production technologies that ensure the least possible negative impact on the environment.

“Tackling youth unemployment and the need to help communities to limit and adapt to climate change which are at present, two of the world’s most pressing challenges.

“Young people need to be included as active and positive forces to help bring about this change,” she said.

The President of Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mr Babagana Mohammed, said that the current coronavirus (COVID-19), which was ravaging the world, would eventually lead to job losses, but the trainees now had an opportunity to become empowered for the challenges ahead.

Mohammed advised the trainees to take advantage of the opportunity to become both entrepreneurs and employers of labour.

“As engineers, you create jobs, take advantage of this great opportunity,’’ he said.

Mr Eddy Megwa, NYSC Zonal Coordinator in Lagos, thanked the foundation for the good work aimed at equipping corps members.

Megwa urged the trainees “to take full advantage of this golden opportunity’’ to make themselves, their families, Nigeria and humanity proud.

Mrs Atinuke Owolabi, Chief Executive Officer/Founder of Wurvicat Solar Foundation said the training was aimed at addressing the problem of inadequate power supply and renewable energy in Nigeria.

“Let me also reiterate that the Solar Energy market is an emerging market projected to be around 30 billion dollars, and we cannot afford to miss out of this opportunity that can make Nigeria a ‘HUB’ and a ‘Solar Energy Power House’ within and outside the continent,” Owolabi said.

Owolabi said that the initiative tagged “PROJECT ENERGY 247 ( 24 hours, seven days) A.C.E (Affodable Clean Energy)” was a five-year plan, which had a target to train more than 5,000 STEM NYSC members across Nigeria.

She said the trainees would be empowered with startups to help them explore both the technical and business aspects of solar technology.

She added the young trainees would be taught how to form a network to train and employ several other unemployed youths to tackle unemployment while providing clean energy solutions.

“The Federal Government, through the office of the SSA to the President on SDGs, is ready to empower and absorb only serious participants.

“The three hands-on practical will milk the foundation of a whooping sum of N1.5 million each, totaling N4.5 million. This is why participants’ commitment will be taken seriously and we shall be strict to compliance,’’ she said.

Panelists at the interactive meeting stressed the need to tackle quackery, which has made the renewable energy market unattractive to electricity consumers in Nigeria.

While making various slide presentations, the panelists identified the huge gap in both the technical and economic aspects which the youths could tap into to become entrepreneurs and provide technical solutions.

One of the panelists, Mr Temitope Adelaye said; “there is nothing you want to power that solar cannot power’’.

Adelaye, a fellow of NSE said that quacks usually made wrong connections to limit the huge capacities of solar panels which made them better and cheaper than generators in the long term.

He said that Nigeria with a population of 200 million generated 12.5 GW of electricity while Brazil with a similar population density of 210 million people produced 150 GW of electricity.

He stressed the need to revolutionise Nigeria’s clean energy generation capacity and build sub-stations to store and distribute the energy to bridge the clean energy gap in the nation.

Responding on behalf of the more than 300 corps members in the faculty online, Mr Nenubari Komi, thanked the foundation, adding that institutes offering similar courses, charged exorbitant rates without impacting the right and adequate knowledge. (NAN)