FG to Revamp Workshop in Ijora

Fadekemi Ajakaiye

The federal government has stated its intention to revamp the Federal Ministry of Works’ Central Workshop in Ijora, Lagos.

This intention was made known in Lagos recently by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Alhaji Babangida Hussaini, during an inspection of facilities at the Central Workshop in Ijora.

Hussaini stated that the purpose of the inspection was to have a holistic view of the centre in order to make it better for its users.

“There is an urgent imperative of the Federal Ministry of works and Housing to turn the workshop around in order to provide mass job creation and training of artisans”, he said.

Hussaini stated that efforts are being put in place to upgrade the obsolete equipment as well as rebuild it dilapidated structure.

“In the 1970s through the 1980s, this workshop was the industrial hub for fabrication and production of mechanical, automotive, and electrical parts as well as a training school. our intention now is to put it back in place for both skilled and unskilled persons for short- and long-term training”, he said.

He stated that after the inspection, the Ministry of Works and Housing would submit its recommendations for consideration by the Federal Executive Council to revamp the Central Workshop of the Mechanical and Electrical Development Skills section.

Hussaini stated that the Ministry was determined to embark on the immediate renovation of the centre. “Between now and December of this year, measures are in place to make this facility conducive for the training of graduates and non-graduates in craftsmanship. A full-scale revamp will commence in January 2022, either from the government or through a Public-Private-Partnership”, he said.

He stated that the Ministry was prepared to ensure new technologies were adopted to replace the obsolete ones, and also to support the ongoing plan to continue the production of railway parts like it was practiced in the past.

“Earlier the Minister of Works and Housing had inspected the facility during an assessment tour of the centre towards making policy recommendations”, he said.

“The revamp of this workshop is channelled towards achieving National Economic Sustainability Plan of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration,” he said.

“We have a formidable team in place and very soon, we will restore the glory of this centre and more employment opportunities will be created,” he said.

“We will adopt both short- and long-term measures to train artisans in various fields in order to bridge the skills gap and also create millions of jobs in line with the policy of the Buhari regime,” he said.

He interacted with the artisans undergoing training at the facility and assured them of government’s commitment to sustaining the Centre. He also implored the trainees to put what was learnt into practice and share same knowledge with their colleagues when they get back to their respective parts of the country.

The inspection team comprised of the Federal Comptroller Works, Engr. Kayode Popoola, the Federal Comptroller Housing, Mrs. Margaret Adejobi, Director Press and PR, Mrs. Akinola, amongst others.