Cummins Inc to recruit and train more local talent

Accra, June 1, GNA - Cummins Incorporated said on Wednesday that it would be recruiting and training local personnel in Ghana and other parts of Africa as part of its comprehensive strategy to grow business across the continent.

Mr. Tom Linebarger, President and Chief Operations Officer (COO) of Cummins Inc, a US-based global power leader in manufacture, distribution and servicing of diesel engines and other related technology, said this at a media briefing in Accra.

The briefing is part of activities of senior executives of the company who are in Ghana as part of a pan-Africa tour to evaluate progress of its new strategy, in Accra on Wednesday.

Mr. Linebarger said because more than half the company's revenue was currently generated outside the home market in the US, they understood the mutual value of partnering with local talent and engaging in local communities.

“Drawing on our experience of building strong businesses in countries such as Brazil, China and India, our Africa strategy is a tangible demonstration of our commitment to bring training and skills to the Ghanaian and West African workforce,” he stated.

Mr. Linebarger said they would recruit people with various educational backgrounds who would be trained to be technicians and other professionals to work with the company, adding that, one would not necessarily have to have a university degree to be recruited and trained.

He stated that Cummins Ghana would partner with some educational institutions such as the Accra Technical Training Centre, University of Ghana, Accra Polytechnic and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to create specific courses for prospective employees. These courses may take between one to four years depending on what level of expertise was needed.

The education programme is expected to commence in the next three months in Ghana, Senegal and South Africa.

Cummins Inc's Africa strategy would also focus on increasing investment in Africa in order to increase growth. In line with this, the company would be investing more in Africa by providing products and services tailored specifically to the unique needs of Ghana and the region.

Mr. Linebarger noted that West Africa was an important business centre for Cummins, with a potential market of close to one billion dollars.

He added that in a little over two years, the company had grown from providing diesel generators to the mining industry to a full service supplier, including filtration and power generation solution.

The investments would be in new distribution channels, attracting strong leadership talent and investing in local communities.

Cummins would also be involved in the local communities in which they operate by performing their corporate social responsibilities especially in the areas of education, social justice (helping the underprivileged in the communities) and environment.

Mr. Brady Southwick, Executive Director, Cummins Africa, said these projects would involve the communities as well as staff of the company who would be given time off to do community service. The focus would be to engage in activities that would impact the communities and also help the business to grow at the same time.

Presently, the company is supporting the training of five apprentices from the School of Mines at Tarkwa and has provided building materials and man hours towards the construction of a community centre in the area.

Cummins Inc operates 25 facilities in Africa including Ghana. It employs more than 1,000 people with annual sales of approximately 264 million dollars.

The new strategy is expected to increase sales to in Ghana to 100 million dollars by 2020 by achieving a leading market in mining power generation and filtration and the emerging oil and gas industry and differentiating the company through superior service and customer support by placing resources closer to customers.

GNA