By; EMMA ARUBI, Warri
Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), has revealed that over 3,000 journalists have been trained in their various capacity building skills programme in Nigeria since the year 2014.
The American oil giants also revealed that Chevron has spent over $1 billion annually to support local content development and contract opportunities across all its projects in the country.
The General Manager, Policy, Government and Public Affairs PGPA, Mr Olusoga Oduselu made these disclosures Thursday at a One-Day Media Capacity building Training programme for journalists in partnership with the Warri Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) held at the Federal University of Petroleum Resources (FUPRE), at Effurun in Uvwie LGA of Delta State.
Mr. Oduselu who was represented at the event by Chevron’s Communication Rep, Mr. Praise Saheed Akinbola, noted that the firm is committed to making investments that deliver transformative returns, especially in its areas of operations adding the company has also made remarkable progress in lowering carbon emission and reducing gas flare in the country.
He said, ” CNL seems to make human investments that deliver long-term transformative returns through our Nigerian Content development activities by
providing employment and contract opportunities to Nigerians in all our projects up to an estimated annual average of over $1 billion.
He stated that through CNL’s investments in gathering and processing associated gas, “routine flaring has been significantly reduced in the past 10 years in all CNL’s operations, saying that “We also contribute to the sustainable development of communities where we operate the Global Memorandum of Understanding (GMoU), a community-led participatory partnership model for community engagement and sustainable development that was pioneered by CNL in 2005.
“Since inception of the GMoU, CNL has contributed billions of Naira to the Regional Development Committees (RDCs) that represent the communities in its area of operations to execute hundreds of projects in the communities through a governance model that ensures transparency and accountability.
“Currently,we are working with relevant government and community stakeholders to transit to the Host Community Development Trusts HCDTF under the Petroleum Industry Act”.
He further revealed that through Chevron’s Foundation and Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), they are impacting hundreds of lives in the Niger Delta and supporting economic empowerment in the region and commended Nigerian journalists and the media for supporting Chevrons’ efforts and vision of becoming a global energy company most admired for “its People, Partnership and Performance.”
“We continue to partner with the media for the development of the society. That’s why CNL sponsored the Advanced Writing and Reporting Skills (AWARES) programme and have progressed the efforts in our media capacity building for journalists this year by training additional 90 journalists drawn from NUJ Lagos, Abuja and Warri in Delta State.
“By the end of this year, this initiative would have benefitted over 180 media practitioners bringing the total to over 300 journalists who have participated in the CNL-sponsored capacity building programmes.
“It is based on the importance of the media to the advancement of humanity in relation to the organization’s responsibility that it sponsored Advance Writing and Reporting Skills programmes in collaboration with Pan Atlantic University in Lagos, trained over 90 Journalists in Lagos last year, 30 Journalists in Asaba, Delta State capital and Abuja.
Oduselu said the organization is much aware that with such capacity building programmes , it helps to improve professional capacity and build lasting partnership with its media stakeholders.
In his welcome address, Chairman of NUJ Warri Chapel, Mr. Victor Okpomor, thanked Chevron Nigeria Limited for sponsoring the training, adding that knowledge gained from the workshop would help in quality reportage of the oil and gas in the region.
Okpomor assured that media practitioners in the region will continue to collaborate with IOCs, particularly Chevron, in the implementation of the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
The Vice Chancellor of FUPRE, Prof. Akpofure Rim-Rukeh; Associate Prof. Majority Oji and Dr. (Mrs.) F. O. Atubi, of the Delta State University (DELSU) Abraka, respectively in their separate lectures charged journalists to be objective and balance in their reportage to deepen the development of oil bearing communities in the Niger Delta just as they tasked media practitioners to hold community leadership and IOCs accountable for the development of the region through reportage of their activities.
