In this interview Dr. Nasiru Sani, Director of Human Resource of Nigerian Meteorological Agency, NiMet, speaks on activities of the new management of the Agency under Prof. Charles Anosike the Director General of the Agency among others.
YEMISI IZUORA of Oriental News reports the interview
Excerpt
What Is The Focus Of The New NiMet Management With Regard To Human
Capital Development?
A lot is going on at NiMet at the moment. Across all the Directorates, not just in the area of capacity building. Shortly after the appointment of the Director General and Chief Executive Officer, also Nigeria’s Permanent Representative with World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Prof. Charles Anosike, he organized a management retreat for the newly appointed Directors and other senior management staff.
That workshop was quite enlightening. We discussed vision and goal alignment. It was drilled down to the various directorates how what we do at NiMet must always align to what the Tinubu government is trying to achieve, linking it with the Aviation sector roadmap of Festus Keyamo, SAN, the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development.
Starting with Tinubu government’s 8-point agenda for economic recovery; food security; poverty eradication; growth, job creation; access to capital; inclusion; rule of law; and fighting corruption, down to the performance bond the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, signed with Aviation Agencies Heads and their Directors in February 2024. Development of human capacity is a key deliverable in the performance bond.
The DG/CEO, Professor Anosike, and the management team have prioritized capacity development, and are working so hard at the same time to reposition the agency. So many initiatives are ongoing in the agency, but specifically looking at the HR Directorate that I head, in the first quarter of 2024, the agency has spent over one hundred and forty million naira (N140M) training over 100 staff members.
This month of May, senior staff will be embarking on another round of training focusing on leadership and performance management, while junior level staff will be trained in ethics and performance management.
Capacity development has become a culture under the new management. The staff say that this is unprecedented and we are seeing the effects already. Staff morale and motivation are higher. Productivity has increased in line with the federal government’s performance management metrics.
We are strictly tasked to ensure accurate reporting of weather and climate information. There are new tools, software and ways of analyzing weather patterns. Through training, our staff are able to adopt these new methods and perform their roles effectively and efficiently.
What Is The Mandate Of NiMet?
The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), is a Federal Government of Nigeria agency charged with the responsibility to advise the Federal Government on all aspects of meteorology.
NiMet is also tasked to project, prepare and interpret government policy in the field of meteorology; and to issue weather (and climate) forecasts for the safe operations of aircrafts, ocean going vessels and oil rigs.
With climate change and weather patterns changing, our work has become more critical. Individuals and organizations rely on our weather forecasts, predictions and alerts for their planning.
This year in particular has been very hot and our hardworking scientists and meteorologists have been so busy ensuring that these climate and weather information are disseminated to the public via our social media platforms, website, text alerts etc.
We are also pleased with the partnership that our DG/CEO has brokered with national TV stations and newspapers to broadcast and transmit the weather information. We also partner with local radio stations including FRCN and the BBC. Our staff were on BBC native language programmes recently sensitizing the public about NiMet’s seasonal climate prediction (SCP).
As A Scientific And Technical Agency, Do You Have Challenges Attracting Staff To The Agency?
The work we do at NiMet is very technical and we work in a scientific environment. We have the most dedicated and professional staff. However, as people retire, gaps are created in the workforce requiring the need to in-fill new talents. There are a few universities offering meteorology and related courses in Nigeria. NiMet has a training school at Oshodi, Lagos, and the MBMisT institute in Katsina.
These institutions train and re-train our staff plus outsiders interested in studying meteorology. There are always ready availability of talent pool from these internal and external institutions to chose from whenever there is need, and the relevant federal government agencies grant NiMet the approval to employ new staff.