The NEPL/Seplat Energy Joint Venture has onboarded 650 teachers and Chief Inspectors of Education (CIE) in Edo and Delta States as part of its 2025 Seplat Teachers Empowerment Programme (STEP).
This began with a two-day workshop in Benin City, with sessions expected to mark the transformative journey of teachers’ upskilling and professional development. Both Edo and Delta States had 325 participants each. The 650 participants were drawn from over 4,666 applicants participating in an online selection process.
The onboarding workshop is the critical foundation phase where collaborative dynamics, programme orientation, and Android tablets are seeded ahead of the four-month virtual training and mentorship programme, which leads to Microsoft certification.
The Seplat JV provides the participants with data throughout the training for seamless internet access.
At the first leg of the workshop held in Benin City, the Edo State capital, Chioma Afe, Director of External Affairs & Social Performance at Seplat Energy, welcomed the new cohort, encouraged them to take the training seriously and outlined the strategic significance of both phases of the training.
Afe, who presented a paper on ‘Communication for Change—Teachers as Agents of Change’, delighted the participants with her background and shared a strategic communication code, “the 7-c’s of communication,” including clarity, conciseness, consideration, completeness, courtesy, concreteness, and correctness.
The code was vital as she asserted, “A teacher is a professional who facilitates learning, guiding students to acquire knowledge, develop competencies, and grow intellectually and emotionally.”
She inspired the participants to embrace their roles as agents of change, grab the opportunity with both hands, and improve themselves continuously for personal benefits, the good of the students, and society.
On his part, the representative of Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, Edo State Commissioner for Education, Dr Paddy Iyamu, commended the Seplat JV for the initiative and stimulated the participants, whom he described as privileged, as “these are the kinds of lecture packages people go to Dubai and pay top dollar for”.
He urged them to keep faith with the programme to the finish line because “In Edo State, we want to make sure that our teachers are packed with excellence, because the quality of the teachers impacts the quality of the students”.
He added that the state government would follow up with the Seplat JV to verify those who completed the online course. “We will take your names and cross-check with the Seplat JV for completion. Have it at the back of your minds that you play a very fundamental role in the lives of Nigerian students and the nation’s future,” he stated.
Gov Okpebholo further charged the participants not just to teach, but strive to be good role models to stem the wave of moral decadence and end the poverty cycle ravaging the society. “I want you to consciously commit to changing the lives of the students entrusted to you positively,” he added.
In the same vein, director, Corporate Services, Seplat Energy Plc, Dr Steve Ojeh charged the participants to propel their careers from within with determination, increased curiosity, willingness to learn and embrace new ideas so as to impact strongly on the society.
Dr Ojeh, who presented a well-researched paper on ‘Leadership and Self Development’, urged participants to be passionate, intentional and ambitious in their career pursuits.
Following the Edo State onboarding held on July 28–29, the Delta State edition followed between July 31 and August 1, 2025.
Launched in 2020, the STEP has empowered 1,334 teachers and CIEs across Edo and Delta States through its signature blend of STEAM-focused training, capacity building, and long-term mentorship. The programme structure combines an intensive onboarding experience with four months of virtual learning supported by a mobile app and web-based platform.
