Knauf, a German-owned company and a market leader in the design of buildings, recently launched its training center in Lagos, Nigeria. The Knauf Training Center will offer theoretical and practical knowledge/skills training for architects, civil engineers, and craftsmen on building processes.
The new training center will offer up to 800 training positions per year and is jointly financed by Knauf and DEG, with funds from the develoPPP.de program of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
“Today shows investor confidence in Nigeria’s economy.” Despite the challenges, a company is coming out to not only manufacture but to contribute to the skill set that is available in the country,” Segun Ajayi-Kadri, director-general of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) stated.
According to him, Nigeria needs skills to power not only the industrial sector but all of her economic life.
Vincent Allard, Knauf’s regional manager for Western and Southern Africa, stated that the training center shows German confidence in Nigeria’s economy.
“The housing sector offers a huge opportunity for job creation, and training Nigerian artisans will help them develop essential skills for the sector’s growth,” Allard stated.
Read also: Leke Adeboye boosts Africa’s tech talent base with digital training
He added that Knauf practices sustainability and has incorporated it into its culture and values. The company meets the highest environmental, safety, and sustainability standards.
“Knauf uses sustainable gypsum. This includes caring for customers, employees, and the environment. Gypsum products that are no longer in use can be recycled, he said.
On his part, Ihendu Okoronkwo, managing director, Knauf Nigeria, said, “Lagos, like New York, needs high-rise buildings, but we cannot sacrifice lives in order to build them.” Internal wall partitioning in high-rise buildings requires drywall, which is as strong as bricks but, unlike bricks, does not grow fungi. Again, blocks are heavy.”
Knauf training center in Nigeria, with an estimated €700,000 investment, is part of a large-scale joint training offensive by Knauf, DEG, and the BMZ in countries such as Nigeria, Tanzania, Egypt, Algeria, and Tunisia. Under this initiative, 12,000 people are expected to be qualified within three years.
