Abidjan – 29th November 2017
At the European Union – African Union Summit in Abidjan, the Centre for Electricity Jobs (CME) hosted the Digital Africa competition winners and judges and the members of the Presidential Council for Africa (CPA). Located in Bingerville and managed by the Ivory Coast Electricity Company (CIE), CME achieved a 95% success rate in their new Electrical Engineering degree course. CIE is a subsidiary of the industrial pan-African group Eranove, a major actor in the electricity and water sectors in Africa.
Following a commitment from the manufacturers and companies in the Ivory Coast’s electricity sector, the Centre for Electricity Jobs, supported by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, has recreated the Electrical Engineering degree course. The promise: “100% of our graduates will be recruited”.
In order to do so, the Ivory Coast Electricity Company (CIE) and CME set up training content that is tailored to the needs of employers, and that uses qualified teachers. They partner with the Félix Houphouët Boigny National Polytechnic Institute (INPHB) to select students, and they also partner with companies. Two years later, the degree course has achieved a 95% success rate, and 100% of the course’s students are doing internships in CME partner companies.
“We are very pleased with these first results, as they demonstrate the validity of the training model that we use, simultaneously responding to the challenge of youth unemployment and the labour shortage that exists in most technical jobs, which are essential to economic development. It is an honour to have hosted the Digital Africa competition winners and judges and the members of the Presidential Council for Africa during the European Union – African Union Summit in Abidjan”, explains Marc Albérola, Director-General of the French-African group Eranove.
Digital Africa 2017 is an innovation competition that gives awards to 10 French and African companies. The Presidential Council for Africa accompanies the French President, Emmanuel Macron, on his visit to Abidjan.
“We are very proud of these results and we are excited about what they tell us about youth employability, which is one of the Ivory Coast’s major issues. It is important for training centres to deliver courses that don’t just lead to a degree, but also, above all, to a job. This is what any parent wishes for their child”, says Paul Ginies, CME Director.
This result is due to the Eranove Group’s history, which is built both on Marcel Zadi Kessy’s beliefs about human capital and on the ongoing research into the lack of appropriate vocational training in the electricity sector. Also, in October 2017, CME was awarded RH Excellence certification by the French Council of investors in Africa (CIAN). The best schools in Africa are selected, in order to reinforce skills and promote the best professional training on offer.
“CIE is very proud of this RH Excellence award. CIE’s training centre has also been named a Centre of Excellence, a status awarded on 24th May 2017 by the Board of Directors of the Association of African Electricity Companies (ASEA). CME is the only organisation in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa to have this award”, added Dominique Kakou, Director-General of CIE.
Through CME, CIE continues to make progress, setting up a new degree pathway: Industrial Production System Maintenance. Students first embarked upon this degree on 10th October 2017. CME also welcomes students from surrounding areas, such as Nigerians, who will be employed by NIGELEC, the Nigerian Electricity Company. So, for this new year, CME has 228 students: 150 students on the Electrical Engineering degree course, compared with 61 in 2016, and 78 students on the Industrial Maintenance degree course.