NNPC, APWEN Commissions Science Labs, Others to Promote Girl Child Education
Segun Awofadeji
The Association of Professional Women Engineers (APWEN) in collaboration with Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has constructed and commissioned a multimillion Naira well equipped Science and technology laboratory with a motorized borehole
Speaking at the commissioning ceremony Weekend, GMD/CEO, NNPC, Mele Kyari Kolo said that the program is targeted at primary school girls, ages 8-10 to promote the study of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) as well as girl-child education in NNPC.
Represented by the Chief Innovation Officer, NNPC, Engr Betty Ugona, he added that in living up to its corporate social responsibility, the NNPC responded to the call, and few months after the historic meeting, APWEN and NNPC collaborated in what was one of the largest and most ambitious attempts to encourage more girls across the Country to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.
In her welcome address, President of APWEN, Engr Dr Elizabeth Jumoke Eterigho said that Scholarships were awarded to 21 best pupils from 10 primary schools in Misau after conducting series of hand-on experiments with everyday materials.
She added that the scholarship was awarded by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, the pinnacle of Nigerian economy, our “Invent It, Build It” execution partner, from Primary to University level.
“Altogether in this phase 1, the total scholarship awarded is eighty-one deserving girls in Primaries 5-6 in the chosen schools from six geo-political zones (seven states) in the Federation and has given hope to these young girls who may have been disrupted in life because they had no one to pay their school fees through secondary schools to universities, while total number of laboratories under construction is five. To date two science and technology laboratories are completed and one out of the two is been commissioned today by NNPC, our partners”, she said.
