Ms Nowerina Nasiwa (front row, left) during the inaugural graduation ceremony of the Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation (OPITO) Engineering Programme in Oil and Gas from Busoga International Polytechnic (BIP) in Jinja City last Friday. PHOTO | RONALD SEEBE
Ms Nowerina Nasiwa has become one of Uganda's first female graduates of the inaugural Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation (OPITO) Engineering Programme in oil and gas
This was confirmed during her graduation from Busoga International Polytechnic (BIP) in Jinja North City Division last Friday, where a total of 130 students were conferred upon Certificates and Diplomas in various disciplines.
The 23-year-old joined BIP in 2022 after her Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) examinations, but also after spending five years at home pondering what her future holds, but got information about vocational training and picked interest.
She, however, says she does not regret enrolling at BIP because she is now assured of getting a job because she was one of the first females selected to do OPITO engineering training.
“I am happy that my dream of being a graduate has come true and I am going to use the skills that I have gained during my training to serve my country and earn a living,” she said on Saturday.
The OPITO programme is globally recognised as the standard for training in the oil and gas sector, and its certifications are sought after by industry professionals worldwide, opening doors to lucrative career opportunities and international employment.
Some major oil and gas companies that commonly require or prefer OPITO certification for certain positions include; Shell, BP (British Petroleum), ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, Chevron, Saudi Aramco, ConocoPhillips, Petrobras, Eni, and Equinox.
BIP director, Ms Reham Mustafa, earlier in an interview with this publication, said BIP was granted OPITO approval at the end of January 2024 “after a lot of work”.
“OPITO being not just an international awarding body, but a Scottish oil and gas awarding body, has very, very stringent standards; most centres in the world require minimum of one year for approvals to take effect, but we (in BIP) already have international standards, so it took us around six months to procure the approvals,” she said.
According to Ms Mustafa, parents and students don’t know the importance of vocational studies, while many students miss vocational training because they failed Mathematics and English Language at Ordinary Level.
“Some students pass Senior Four with impressive aggregates and some with distinctions in English Language and Mathematics, but when they are given interviews, they fail both subjects.
“This is making the institution underutilised with low enrolment because we receive over 700 applicants, but only 200 pass interviews yet we have the capacity to accommodate 700 students,” Ms Mustafa further explained.
The Skills Development Officer at Petroleum Authority of Uganda, Mr James Okwi, said many students are not joining vocational schools because they have never received career guidance about such studies at primary and secondary levels.
He added that teachers in primary and secondary schools lack sufficient information on the vocational education sector and its role in economic development, and that not all parents and schools encourage students to pursue vocational courses during career guidance yet they are an important aspect of our education sector.
Jinja City Northern Division Mayor, Ayub Wamika, said the alleged poor mindset change of our society has prevented many students from embracing vocational training.
Busoga Kingdom Katukkiro (Prime Minister), Dr Joseph Muvawala, said Uganda needs more people with vocational training than university graduates of any level of qualification because it is easy to get a job or create one using employable skills obtained from vocational studies.
“Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) is a key driver of socio-economic transformation and industrial development of any country and Uganda is no exception,” Dr Muvawala said, adding that students doing OPITO engineering training at BIP can work in the Oil and Gas sector because their certification is recognised worldwide.
About BIP
BIP, a partnership between the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and Busoga Kingdom, was commissioned in September 2021 by the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Ms Janet Museveni, to train and provide learners, especially in Busoga Sub-region, with specialised skills.
