CFAO Suzuki Graduates Female Technicians After Intensive Training

By Bennett  Oghifo

Suzuki by CFAO has proven its willingness to contribute its quota towards the empowerment of women with the Suzuki Empower Her (SEH) programme. 

The training programme, which lasted four months, ended with a graduation ceremony this week, for the first set of female automotive technicians in its maiden edition.

The female technicians received thorough theoretical and practical insights into a variety of topics, including but not limited to gearboxes, engine diagnosis, repairs, and sensors, during their training in partnership with Automedics, which began on August 1, 2022.

During the graduation ceremony, the general manager, Aissatou Diouf, stated that she envisages a successful long-term partnership that will empower the female gender beyond training and emphasised the need for consistency. 

“We don’t want to just train them and let them go.” We need to do a lot of things to empower them more. It has to be something consistent, not to show that we are doing something but to know that Suzuki by CFAO has empowered women.”

The ceremony, which was held at the Suzuki by CFAO showroom in Akin Adesola, Victoria Island, Lagos, was themed “Getting Ready for the Future” and started off with a question-and-answer session with Helene Paradisi, finance director of CFAO Mobility, and the general manager of Suzuki by CFAO, Aissatou Diouf.

A panel discussion followed with  Vivienne Oche Bamgboye, non-executive director of Greenwich Merchant Bank; Funmi Abiola, head of marketing for CFAO Mobility; Ifetayo Ogundele, auto-technician and founder of Autozest; and Jennifer Ishike, senior sales executive for Suzuki at CFAO. The panelists got the chance to talk about their work experiences and give motivational tips for the young graduates.

The graduates were later awarded certificates, and the two best-performing students were granted an internship opportunity with Suzuki by the CFAO.

The SEH programme is an industry initiative that further reiterates a commitment to allowing women to grow and make a mark in the automotive industry, which is predominantly male-driven.

Interestingly, Suzuki by CFAO, with its diversified workforce and women taking on challenging roles from the top management level, is an embodiment of one of the CFAO Group’s core values, diversity.

The SEH programme seeks to empower women in the automotive sector by offering free training to individuals who don’t have the resources but want to begin and advance their careers as technicians.

The curriculum is now complete, and the graduating female automotive technicians will have the chance to look for employment in the car industry and other relevant fields.

Recall that on August 1 of this year, Suzuki, CFAO Nigeria, and Automedics Limited signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to kick off the Suzuki Empower Her (SEH) programme that ended last November.

During the signing of the MoU that heralded the new partnership, General Manager of Suzuki by CFAO, Aissatou Diouf, expressed her appreciation to the Automedics team for offering value to the girl child and shared her delight in supporting the ongoing work in her capacity.