Emulate Samsung’s training for growth, human dev’t

In 2018, at the peak of the construction and integration of the Egina FPSO, over 3,000 Nigerians were employed by Samsung (SHI-MCI). The challenge was that most of these employees had no industry qualifications or experience before starting work on the project.  Samsung chose to meet this challenge head-on not by mobilizing employees from overseas […]

In 2018, at the peak of the construction and integration of the Egina FPSO, over 3,000 Nigerians were employed by Samsung (SHI-MCI).

The challenge was that most of these employees had no industry qualifications or experience before starting work on the project.  Samsung chose to meet this challenge head-on not by mobilizing employees from overseas but instead  investing 560,000 man hours of training programs with one goal in mind: to identify future Nigerian talents who could participate in the historic completion of the Egina FPSO. This transformation resulted in thousands of Nigerians eventually joining Samsung team to form the core of Samsung’s first heavy industries operation in Africa.

When Godwin Oghenegueke was hired as a cleaner of Samsung’s welding floor in 2014, he never expected that he would have a chance to be one of the first beneficiaries of Samsung’s free-of-charge welding training course.

He said he started by watching over the shoulders of the students grinding, welding and coating. Seeing this, the Korean instructors invited him to help them on small tasks. Even though it was a small thing, having seen his commitment and hard work, they invited him to train with them. He is now an internationally-certified welder, permanently hired by Samsung as a professional welder.

Godwin’s instructor remembers how he watched intently over the shoulders of the first batch of trainees. Goanghun Kim, a senior trainer at Samsung’s Welding Qualification Center (WQC), noted that “passion” and “enthusiasm to learn and improve” were the most valued attributes they seek in Samsung’s future team members. He said there was lot of resistance among existing trainees, they told those students that background is not important, as long as you are devoted in developing your skills, that’s what matters.

Creating equal opportunities and instilling an inclusive work culture enabled Samsung to break record after record. Motivated by trust and without the constraints of societal prejudice, Samsung’s Nigerian trainees and employees were propelled to keep pushing the boundaries of industry norms; Samsung can proudly boast a 100% pass rate in the international welder training program. These achievements eventually led the SHI-MCI integration and fabrication yard to become one of the few companies in Africa to be awarded accreditation and training certificates by both national and international bodies including the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment and the International Institute of Welding.

Welding trainer, Mr Goanghun Kim, is very firm in saying that Samsung’s work culture and equal opportunity policy are just enablers, and the achievements are due to the more than 3,000 individuals just like Godwin. He said Nigerians should be proud and empowered by these achievements, as this proves the competence and potential of Nigerian people in the international job market and will help establish Nigeria as an engineering hub to global manufacturing industries. He noted that Nigerians are ambitious and hard working as he had never seen such enthusiasm and eagerness to improve and to learn.

Godwin’s story proves how training opportunities can be equalizers between the haves and the have-nots, and should be further harnessed and fostered in Nigeria to play its part in providing economic growth. It also highlights the fact that many vocational courses are too expensive and are not accessible to those who need them the most. This barrier aggravates the economic and societal prosperity gap.

An international welding certificate training course similar to Godwin’s can cost on average of N2.5m to N2.8m per person which makes the course unaffordable for many Nigerians without extra financial support.

Godwin is one of many inspiring stories from the Egina project as he says he would not have been able to afford this training without Samsung’s help. People like Godwin are a living testimony to many ambitious young Nigerians.  Godwin, who now works at Samsung as a Material Controller says what makes him happy is to have the privilege to teach others, passing on the same opportunities he received.

For this story to continue in Nigeria, more global engineering companies should follow Samsung’s example and help the government and educational sector as a part of their local content plans. By providing opportunities, transferring skills and supporting vocational programs to those who cannot afford education, Samsung’s example will hopefully serve as a pathway for other companies to further accelerate Nigeria’s economic growth and human development.

Ikechukwu Azubuike wrote from Lagos