USAID to train power companies in safety
9,000 linesmen across the country will be imparted training over 3 years.
ISLAMABAD:
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has finalised a plan to launch a three-year safety training programme for 9,000 linesmen of nine power distribution companies across the country.
Initially, 620 linesmen of Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) will receive intensive safety training, which will kick off in December, USAID said in a press release.
Later, the programme will be extended to other companies including electricity supply companies of Sukkur, Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan, Islamabad, Peshawar and Quetta. In this regard, training of trainers has already been completed this month.
This assistance programme is part of the US government’s commitment to support Pakistan in reforming the power sector and helping power companies improve their performance.
USAID said it was implementing a number of assistance programmes, including institutional improvement of power companies through capacity building and trainings in all functional areas.
“Statistics of deadly accidents in distribution companies present a very grim picture showing no signs of reduction, rather there has been an increase in the number of accidents over the last few years,” said Dick Dumford, Chief of Party of USAID Power Distribution Programme. More than 100 linesmen lost their lives in 2010-11 which left miserable effects on their families and an equal number was injured seriously or disabled, he said, adding analysis of the accidents clearly indicated that the majority of them were due to non-adherence of safety procedures. He said more than 90 per cent of accidents were not due to defective equipment but due to failure on the part of workmen and those in authority to observe safety rules and adopt safety practices for accident prevention.
The programme, being conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Water and Power, is aimed at working jointly with state-run power companies to improve their performance in terms of reduction in losses and improvement in revenues and customer services.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 20th, 2011.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has finalised a plan to launch a three-year safety training programme for 9,000 linesmen of nine power distribution companies across the country.
Initially, 620 linesmen of Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) will receive intensive safety training, which will kick off in December, USAID said in a press release.
Later, the programme will be extended to other companies including electricity supply companies of Sukkur, Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan, Islamabad, Peshawar and Quetta. In this regard, training of trainers has already been completed this month.
This assistance programme is part of the US government’s commitment to support Pakistan in reforming the power sector and helping power companies improve their performance.
USAID said it was implementing a number of assistance programmes, including institutional improvement of power companies through capacity building and trainings in all functional areas.
“Statistics of deadly accidents in distribution companies present a very grim picture showing no signs of reduction, rather there has been an increase in the number of accidents over the last few years,” said Dick Dumford, Chief of Party of USAID Power Distribution Programme. More than 100 linesmen lost their lives in 2010-11 which left miserable effects on their families and an equal number was injured seriously or disabled, he said, adding analysis of the accidents clearly indicated that the majority of them were due to non-adherence of safety procedures. He said more than 90 per cent of accidents were not due to defective equipment but due to failure on the part of workmen and those in authority to observe safety rules and adopt safety practices for accident prevention.
The programme, being conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Water and Power, is aimed at working jointly with state-run power companies to improve their performance in terms of reduction in losses and improvement in revenues and customer services.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 20th, 2011.