MOMAS Electricity Meters Manufacturing Company Limited (MEMMCOL) and its defense and security arm, EPAIL Nigeria, have partnered with the ONEIH-Kola Balogun Technology Center (O-KBTC) and Summit University, Offa, to launch a Drone Pilots Club exclusively for Offa indigenes.
The initiative, which will kick off with an inaugural batch of 100 secondary school students, aims to equip young minds with essential drone piloting skills.
It will also help promoting local capacity in drone technology and aeronautics.
According to the Chief Executive Officer of ONEIH, Dr (Engr) Taofeeq Kola Olatinwo, the programme will begin with a “Training of Trainers” phase scheduled to start on Sunday, May 11, 2025.
“We are sending three Offa indigenes to commence their two-week training at MOMAS. These trainers will in turn oversee the training of the 100 selected students in Offa.
“It’s a partnership initiative targeted at developing young drone pilots and stimulating innovation in our local communities,” he said.
He added that, at the end of the exercise, two drones will be provided to officially launch the club.
The announcement follows a recent tour of the MEMMCOL facility by Dr. (Engr) Olatinwo and retired Air Vice Marshal AbdulGaniyu Olabisi, led by MEMMCOL’s Founder and Chairman, Dr. (Engr.) Kola Moshood Gbolashere Balogun.
The visit, News Bulletin Nigeria gathered, was part of broader preparations for the launch of the Drone Pilots Club.
The drone training initiative will operate out of the ONEIH-Kola Balogun Technology Center (O-KBTC), commissioned on December 28, 2023. O-KBTC is West Africa’s first specialized facility dedicated to drone design, assemblage, manufacturing, repair, and maintenance.
The center also houses facilities for Printed Circuit Board (PCB) design and Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA). It is positioning Offa as a regional hub for advanced technological development.
EPAIL, a sister company to MEMMCOL, is Nigeria’s foremost ballistic equipment manufacturer. Known for its innovations in security solutions, EPAIL collaborates with government and private entities to safeguard infrastructure across Nigeria. It remains the first indigenous company to own a full-scale facility for manufacturing bulletproof vests, ballistic helmets, and related defense products.
