The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) said it remained among few private companies that had keyed into the Federal Government’s drive to create jobs for the youths.

Mr Emeka Ezeh, the EEDC’s Head of Communications said this in a statement on Saturday in Enugu.

He said that the company had employed no fewer than 1,200 staff mostly youths within the last eight months.

Ezeh said that with the recruitment done in 2017, the staff strength of the company was now over 4,200.

“Within the South East, EEDC is the only private establishment with the highest number of employees having employed over 1,200 staff within the past eight months, with a staff strength of over 4,200.”

Ezeh said that as part of its contribution toward continued job creation, especially among the youths, it had recently employed 35 graduates into the second phase of its Graduate Trainee Programme.

He said that successful candidates, who had already gone through the on boarding process, had been deployed to different sections of the company’s operations where they would be trained for two years in all aspects of the company’s operations.

According to him, considering the high rate of unemployment, EEDC as a responsible corporate organisation is using the Graduate Trainee Programme as its contribution toward providing employment to Nigerian youths.

“The programme, which is patterned after some successful graduate traineeship programmes, is a conscious initiative by the management of EEDC to attract and develop the best and brightest young graduates from universities within and outside the country.

“These individuals will eventually assume key roles as they become available within the organisation as part of EEDC’s business continuity and human capital development strategy.

“The training has been grouped in two tracks. The first track comprises of operations, revenue cycle services, project management and engineering; while the second track comprises of finance, administration, ICT, procurement and human resources.

“The trainees will equally have a feel of customer service, regulatory, communications and safety operations.

“During the period of the training, each candidate is be assigned to a mentor, who provides guidance as well as review their accomplishments and the challenges they may face in the course of their training period,” he said.

Ezeh recalled that in November 2016, EEDC launched the scheme with 20 graduate trainees, who were successful after very rigorous screening exercise.

The EEDC Graduate Traineeship Programme is for only post-NYSC graduates with first class or second class upper division category from universities as well as post-NYSC graduates of polytechnics with distinction or upper credit category.

The students must have studied engineering, physical or management sciences. (NAN)

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