As part of its corporate social responsibilities, Nexgen Energy and Allied Services on Saturday donated a solar system to an orphanage, Jesus Children Mission Outreach (JCMO).
The company installed a 3.5 KWA inverter with a 2700 2700-watt solar panel and a 4000-litre water tank in the orphanage.
Speaking on behalf of the management at the inauguration ceremony, the inventory manager at Nexgen Energy, Nneka Festus said the provision of the solar system would give the children in the home opportunities to succeed in life.
According to her, the gesture was made in line with the company’s value addition and excellence objectives, culminating in building the next generation.
“The children in the home can now do their assignments and be encouraged to study to pursue their education.
“For the management of the home, there are bills that come with using power supply from the national grid that have now been taken off. Cost savings can be channelled into other needs,” Festus said.
Also, another staff of the company, Mr Noah Ojo, an engineer, said having an alternative power supply in every home would go a long way to reduce cost incurred on generating set and fuel.
Ojo noted that the company has taken it upon itself to provide affordable and durable green energy, particularly now that there seem to be acute shortage of power from the national grid.
In her response, Dr Rosemary Odigbo of JCMO said they had suffered from the epileptic power supply, which has made life difficult for children in the home.
Odigbo said the solar system would helped reduce the cost spent on fuel and maintenance of the generating set and would make the children comfortable.
“The burden of darkness is out of our lives. Now, we know that every day there would be light. In the night, at times, we have to quickly cook, serve and eat because we know there is no light.
“At times, the generator is bad and at times, the generator is good but there is no fuel, so all these have come to an end and this has given us hope that there are people around us,” Odigbo said.
Also, one of the stakeholders at the orphanage, Mrs Beatrice Unuajefe, said the donation would have any impact on the home.
“It has not been easy, but by the grace of God, we have come this far. What Nexgen has done to light up this place will help the children during this hot weather, as many of the children sleep in a room,” Unuajefe said.
One of the children in the home, Mercy Linus, a 19-year-old undergraduate at Federal University Oye Ekiti (FUOYE) studying Linguistics and African languages, said it was a dream come true.
“We have always hoped for something like this. Now that there is no light, we can read,” she said.
Also, another child from the home, Tunmise Omoobaorun, said, “When there is light, it brings joy; I can do my assignment,” she said.
JCMO is an orphanage that shelters children from different backgrounds. It has three homes in Ibadan and serves over 300 children in rural and urban areas.
