The Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of the car manufacturing company, Innoson Group, Chief Innocent Chukwuma, has said 8,000 direct workers are currently employed nationwide by his company.

Chukwuma disclosed this on Saturday after conducting the management of the Bank of Industry around his vehicle manufacturing factories in Nnewi, Anambra State. According to him, the company presently has 8,000 direct staff and plans to engage 2,000 additional workers in a new factory.

He assured that the workforce would increase significantly within a short period when expansion projects are completed, and new production lines become fully operational. On gender balance, Chukwuma said women were deployed into sensitive sections of the factory because of their discipline, diligence, and strict adherence to rules.

“Let me tell you, there are some sensitive areas; we decided that it is women who will be there because they obey the rules. “When you need accuracy in some areas, women are more prudent in such areas. “The female folks obey the rules more than the male: train them and they obey the rules,” he said.

Chukwuma said his vision was to make youths productive and self-reliant, adding that he is establishing a tractor plant at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He said that the tractor plant would improve the availability of tractors for farmers and enhance agricultural productivity across communities in the country.

He attributed his achievements to a longstanding partnership with the Bank of Industry, which he said had supported equipment acquisition for over two decades.

The bank’s Executive Director, Large Enterprises, Omar Shekarau, said Innoson Group started small but had grown into a company Nigerians are proud of.

Shekarau assured of the bank’s continued support. He urged Nigerians to patronise Innoson products to strengthen the local industry and boost the national economy.