The official launch of the STEMCafe that took place in Port Harcourt witnessed a series of hands-on workshops, demonstrations, and interactive exhibits showcasing the potential of STEM for children aged 8 to 19.

Local community members, educators, and policymakers convened to celebrate this milestone in STEM education and innovation in Nigeria.

Equipped with Digital labs, robotics kits, 3D printers, computer games, STEMCafe aims at providing children and young adults with knowledge and skills in engineering, computer sciences, and mathematics.

Leveraging the successful implementation of STEMCafe in Lagos, Nairobi and Kigali, the STEMCafe in Part Harcourt stands as a catalyst to encourage children and young adults to explore, experiment and create, empowering the next generation of thinkers, innovators and problem-solvers and fostering a lifelong love for STEM. “

Empowering communities through education has been engrained in SLB’s history for decades. In 1998, the idea of using the Internet as an education tool took form with the introduction of the SLB Excellence in Educational Development (SEED) program.

The SEED program engages employees, educators, retirees, and volunteers around the world to share their passion for learning and STEM subjects through workshops, camps, classroom visits, and the professional development of teachers.

In 2004, the Schlumberger Foundation launched the Faculty for the Future program.

Aimed at reducing the gender gap in the field of science, Faculty for the Future provides funding to women from emerging economies for advanced graduate study in STEM subjects. Till date, over 100 Nigerian women have received the grant.

With the STEMCafe initiative, SLB adds to its history another project that promotes STEM disciplines and explore solutions to the pressing challenges of climate change and energy sustainability to drive progress for people and the planet.

Speaking at the STEMCafe launch event, Sops Ideriah, managing director, West Africa, SLB, said:

“As a global technology company, SLB is committed to creating technologies that unlock access to energy for the benefit of all to meet the world’s growing energy demand. We believe that fostering a passion for STEM and sustainability from an early age is key to achieving a balanced future. With over 70 years of operations in Nigeria, we continue to identify ways to strengthen human capacity development and accelerate access to the knowledge needed to drive innovation for the continued progress of society. Through this collaboration, we hope to empower the next generation of STEM leaders that will address the challenges of tomorrow.”

“We are thrilled to collaborate with SLB to bring this exciting initiative to Port Harcourt,” added Nissi Madu, managing partner, RVRB. “By combining our expertise in STEM education with SLB’s leadership in the energy sector, we hope to empower the next generation of innovators who will drive positive change in our communities and beyond.”

The newly established STEM makerspace in Port Harcourt will serve as a hub for creativity, innovation, and hands-on learning.

With state-of-the-art tools, resources, and guidance from experienced mentors, participants will have the opportunity to bring their ideas to life, tackle real-world problems, and contribute to a more sustainable future.

Konga, Nigeria’s leading composite e-commerce giant, has been ranked among an exclusive list of 25 companies rated as the best place to work in Nigeria for 2023.

The list, released by professional networking platform, LinkedIn, saw the Konga Group placed in rarefied company with the likes of Ernst & Young, MTN Nigeria and Sterling Bank, among others.

In arriving at the list of companies that made the list, LinkedIn disclosed that it had relied on eight criteria that have been shown to lead to career progression, which include: ability to advance, skills growth, company stability, external opportunity, company affinity, gender diversity, educational background and employee presence in the country.

Equally important, it had revealed that the selected companies all stood out for offering their employees the right environment to grow their careers.

Furthermore, LinkedIn said the methodology factored in key components like how employees are advancing both within a company and when they leave, how they are upskilling while employed there and more, which reveal companies that help set people up to get ahead in their careers. Crucially, it had also considered factors like attrition and layoffs.

“Companies that have laid off 10% or more of their workforce between Jan. 1, 2022, and the list launch, based on public announcements — or that have attrition greater than 10%, based on LinkedIn data — are ineligible to rank,” it said.

The development comes against a backdrop of significant headcount actions among global tech companies and other top brands, with the likes of Google, Meta (Facebook), Amazon, Microsoft, Accenture, Twitter, Netflix, Shopify, Lyft, Apple, Tesla and Zoom, among others, laying off thousands in the face of uncertain economic conditions.

A leader in the Nigerian e-commerce space, Konga was identified by LinkedIn as a company offering a wide range of products, including electronics, fashion, beauty and personal care, home and kitchen appliances, and more.

Acquired by the Zinox Group in early 2018, Konga has risen to the pinnacle of the e-commerce space, carving a niche for itself with its customer-centric approach, pocket-friendly pricing, status as a reliable source of genuine products and its growing ecosystem of thriving verticals which include KongaPay, a CBN-licensed mobile money wallet, Konga Travels & Tours, an online travel booking agency and Konga Health, a digital healthcare distribution company, among several others.

The company has also received regular rave reviews from shoppers and industry experts alike, with the most recent coming via a consumer-focused survey which projected Konga as the most admired and innovative e-commerce company on the African continent.

The survey was published on March 15, 2023, coinciding with this year’s anniversary of the World Consumer Rights Day.

In addition to Konga, other companies ranked in the 2023 LinkedIn report include Interswitch Group, First Bank of Nigeria, Standard Chartered Bank, NNPC Limited, Eko Electricity Distribution, British American Tobacco (BAT), Ikeja Electric, Nestlé, ExxonMobil, AB InBev, UBA Group, IHS Towers, SLB, Halliburton, Shell, TotalEnergies, Tropical General Investments (TGI) Group, Huawei, Wema Bank, Deutsche Post DHL Group and 9mobile.