"Nigeria is Losing": Minister Raises Alarm Over Foreign Welders Earning N120,000 Per Day in Nigeria
- Nigeria's Minister of Technology has disclosed the high amount Nigeria loses to the importation of welders
- He also voiced concerns that Nigerian welders were missing out on the high daily earnings of foreign welders in Nigeria
- He lamented that Nigerian welders lacked the international certification to find work in the oil and gas sectors.
Legit.ng journalist Victor Enengedi has over a decade's experience covering Energy, MSMEs, Technology and the stock market.
Uche Nnaji, the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology in Nigeria, has expressed concern about the unequal treatment accorded to local welders compared to their foreign counterparts.
Additionally, he highlighted the distressing fact that Nigeria is experiencing an annual financial loss of $10 billion due to the significant importation of welders possessing International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) certification.
Source: UGC
Nnaji made these remarks during the Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony in Abuja on Thursday, November 23, 2023.
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The agreement involved the National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM), the Federal University of Technology, Minna (FUTMINNA), and Neuro-Linguistic Programming Limited, aiming to foster collaborations between academia and industry.
This development follows an earlier report by Legit.ng that Canada has introduced a fresh immigration pathway, allowing carpenters, plumbers, and welders from various nations, including Nigeria, to apply.
Nigerian welders have no certification for oil and gas jobs
According to Leadership, Nnaji highlighted that foreign welders in Nigeria earn approximately $150 per day (about N119,100 at N794/$ official rate as of Friday, November 24).
Despite having over a million welders in the country, none possess international certification that would qualify them for employment in the oil and gas sectors.
Nnaji said:
What Nigeria is losing by not doing that is over $10 billion every year. Because a welder is paid about $150 a day. The same way, if you look at AKK pipes that are going on now, most of them came from Pakistan, India, China, not one from Nigeria.
The minister observed that none of the approximately 11,000 welders hired by the recently commissioned Dangoteery were Nigerian.
He said that not possessing the required ISO certification prevented Nigerian welders from securing employment, resulting in a significant loss for the country.
He added:
We are lacking in manpower. We are lacking in skillful artisans, not just digital people. Because looking at the Dangote Refinery, it employed about 11,000 artisans, welders but none of those welders came from Nigeria. They were all imported. A job as very small as welding that we have over one million welders here, none of them have ISO certification.
FG to help Nigerian welders get international certification
Minister Nnaji expressed his commitment to collaborating with the Nigerian Welding Association.
Their joint initiative aims to establish hubs in each of the six geopolitical zones, providing training for welders and facilitating the acquisition of ISO certification.
This strategic move will grant welders the necessary credentials to work domestically and internationally.
Nigerian female welder makes two steel doors for house, shows off skill
Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Olawunmi Giwa, a young woman from Nigeria, exemplified the significance of possessing skills by showcasing her work on social media.
In a widely circulated video, she documented herself cutting an iron rod before skillfully crafting steel doors.
Donning protective eyewear to shield her eyes from sparks, she welded various door components, ultimately completing the project.
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Source: Legit.ng
