By Moses Akaigwe
PAN Nigeria Limited, the premier vehicle assembly plant in Nigeria, has clinched the ‘Most Resilient Auto Company in Nigeria Award’ at the Nigeria Automotive Journalist (NAJA) Awards 2021, which took place recently at Eko Hotel & Suites, Lagos.
The colorful event was well attended by stakeholders in the Nigerian auto industry.
PAN was established in 1972, and of all the auto plants set up in the 1970s only the Kaduna-based plant has remained resilient and operational till today.
PAN has since evolved from being a single brand assembly plant into a multi-brand automaker, with the vehicle mix including the production of sedans, Higer 16- and 19-seater buses, light vans, Higer ambulances, and sport utility vehicles across three brands, with a platform for local content development programmes.
PAN is currently in discussions with other OEMs {original equipment manufacturers} as well.
The PAN Learning Centre is the hub of skills acquisition in the automotive industry in Nigeria, running specialised training programmes in routine vehicle maintenance, advanced automotive diagnosis, automotive tyre service and repair, and automotive air conditioning.
The Learning Centre also provides training in panel-beating, spray-painting, welding and fabrication and computer hardware maintenance and repair, as well as conversion of vehicles to run on gas.
The centre is accredited by City and Guilds of London Institute UK, as well being accredited to run a National Innovation Diploma in Computer Software Engineering, Computer Hardware.
It has helped in bridging the skill gap in the auto industry with over 900 annual turn out of trainees sponsored by Kaduna Refinery & Petrochemical Company (KRPC), North East Development Commission (NEDC), United Nation Development Program (UNDP), and Lady Mechanic Initiative (LMI).
Others sponsors are Federal Government {training of ex-militants}, Kano State Government, Nigeria Customs Services, Nigeria Immigration Services, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA)through their Technical Skills Development Programme (TSDP),
PAN had in the past won several honours at the NAJA awards, most notable among which is the Car of the Year won by the Peugeot 301 in the 2018 edition of the awards.