Nam Theun 2 agrees to support Khammuan sustainable skills development

Khammuan province’s Technical-Vocational College and Nam Theun 2 Power Company Ltd have signed a new cooperation agreement on sustainable local skills development for the hydropower sector.
The cooperation agreement was inked last week, after the first three-year implementation of the memorandum of understanding’s action plan on labour market-oriented human resources development ended in October this year.
The agreement was signed by Director of Khammuan province’s Technical-Vocational College, Mr Viengsavanh Phatthavong and Chief Administrative Officer of Nam Theun 2, Mrs Corinne Alezra, and also attended by representatives from the Education and Sports Department of Khammuan province, Nam Theun 2, along with teachers and students of the college.
According to Nam Theun 2, under this agreement, the firm and the college intend to continue long-term cooperation to develop skilled human resources for the hydropower sector. Both sides will work together to create a framework to meet the future needs of the hydropower labour market in which Nam Theun 2 will support technical assistance and provide employment opportunities.
The signed agreement aims to develop or adjust the electrical and mechanical curriculums, including the manuals on safety procedures, safety inspections, risk analysis, English for specific purposes and setting up a hydro-mechanical programme, which reflects the needs of the hydropower sector.
The two sides will continue to award long-term scholarships for Khammuan province’s students to pursue higher diplomas in electrical power and hydro-mechanics for three years from 2019 to 2021. The company will continue to support technical training for teachers, internships for final-year students and occasional recruitment opportunities at Nam Theun 2. Knowledge and experience will be shared on Nam Theun 2’s work and services through the annual hydropower day event to strengthen multilateral cooperation and promotion of the company.
As part of its ambitions, Nam Theun 2 is committed to the growth of Laos and this cooperation programme will help improve the quality of the college’s teaching and learning and create hundreds of graduates annually for the hydropower labour market. This will increase the number of skilled workers to meet the increasing demand of the hydropower sector in the Khammuan province and throughout the country.
Nam Theun 2 and the college began cooperation in 2016 and have racked up numerous achievements, for instance, adjustment to the electrical and mechanical curriculum, development of basic supervisory control and data acquisition manual, technical training for teachers, long-term scholarships and internships for students and teaching-learning equipment/materials.

ByTimes Reporters
(Latest Update December 9, 2019)