Education As Social Responsibility: The Total Example

The future of any nation depends to a great extent on its youths. Youths are rightly described, in a popular axiom, as the leaders of tomorrow. But the nation’s future can not be guaranteed without providing quality education for its youths.

Education is the key to the future. It equips one with knowledge and skills and helps to address the social and economic challenges of the society. This goes to buttress John F. Kennedy’s assertion that “our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education”. Indeed, the depth of a nation’s education measures its  progress .

This is why both government and private sector  have always come up with initiatives to address the educational challenges confronting the country.

In line with government’s policy to give education priority attention, Total Exploration and Production Nigeria Ltd  recently organized the 2012 open day forum for secondary school students from Rivers and Akwa Ibom States with the theme “My Role Model”.

The forum attracted 1000 students from selected schools in the two States, with the Rivers State Commissioner for Education, Dame Alice Lawrence-Nemi as the day’s role model.

The initiative, according to the company’s Deputy Managing Director, Port Harcourt District, Mr Denis Bethelot, was informed by the Total’s sustainable development vision to promote education of youth in its host communities and Nigeria, at large.

Explaining the relevance of ‘my role model’ theme to the development of the students as leaders of tomorrow, Mr Bethelot said, “ integrity, boldness and foresight are part of the company’s ways of life”. This, he says, explains why the company has always  identified personalities that have distinguished themselves in public life, service to humanity and professional excellence to partner with, as visible symbols worth emulating as role models.

“The idea of ‘Role Models’ for students in our secondary schools and for every young child for that matter, is very pertinent at this development stage as the role model are not only symbols, but will be the burning light at the end of the education tunnel. The achievements of the role models become the focus and inspiring energy for tomorrow’s achievers”, he said.

He urged the participating students to take advantage of the theme and become shining examples for other students to follow as they help spread the message of transformation through a lifestyle of integrity, boldness and foresight in all  that they strive to achieve.

The Rivers State Commissioner for Education, Dame Alice Lawrence-Nemi who was the guest role model of the day said, she chose her father as role model and that navigated her life into who she is today.

She therefore advised the participants to choose people that would impact on their lives meaningful as role models.

Dr (Mrs) Augusta Fubara who presented they key paper tagged “Guidance and Counseling”, harped on the importance of the programme, saying the programme draws the  students’ attention from pornographic films to a more rewarding expedition.

Fubara also stressed the need for carreer guidance and counseling in schools, noting that it gives direction to students into what they should become in future.

Total is one of the multi-nationals in Nigeria that have contributed to the nation’s development through its support for education. The company, Mr Bethelot says, has invested massively in the growth of education through the building of schools’ infrastructure, scholarship awards, teachers’  development programme, among others.

The University of Uyo Engineering lecture theater in  Akwa Ibom State, e-library project at the University of Calabar were among the educational initiatives  of the company.

The ‘catch-them-young’ for instance, is a novel initiative through which the company intends to mould future leaders in the country.

According to  Mr Bethelot, the programme is designed to catch  young intelligent pupils from primary schools and follow up their education and training in better environments without the handicaps that could impede their progress in education.

Total also provides merit scholarship awards for students in tertiary institutions and takes over the sponsorship of forty students on yearly basis at the Institute of Petroleum Studies (IPS), University of Port Harcourt,  in collaboration with the French Petroleum Institute.  Graduates from the IPS are world class engineers in petroleum engineering and petroleum management.

Commenting on how the company’s scholarship programmes have contributed to the development of the nation’s educational development and aspiration, the Deputy General Manager, Public Affairs/Corporate Social Responsibility, Dr (Mrs) Nkoyo Attah said, “Many of the Total scholarship beneficiaries are in positions of responsibility in various sectors of the Nigerian economy and industries, ranging from the academia, consultancies in engineering, science, law, accounting and management and other technological fields where they positively impact on the society”.

Some of the beneficiaries of the company’s educational initiatives enjoined other multinationals in the country, particularly those in the Niger Delta to take a cue from the oil company.

According to Mrs Claris James-Amadi whose son is a beneficiary of the Total initiatives,  education in a stable and democratic society is unattainable without a minimum degree of literacy and  knowledge on the part of citizens. “Other multinationals and corporate organisations should emulate Total by collaborating government’s efforts in the area of education”, she said.

Vivian-Peace Nwinaene