Abuja: An expert, Mr Adeleye Oladimeji, says Nigeria can rake in more than N32 billion as revenue in 10 years through fire detection and alarm system service.
Oladimeji, the Managing Director of Hoist Life Safety System Limited, disclosed this in an interview recently in Abuja.
He said that his firm is a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) created to drive the National Fire Detection and Alarm System (NAFDAS), a Federal Government project.
According to him, NAFDAS is predicated on life safety systems, networking, monitoring and deployment.
Oladimeji, an engineer, said that the project was aimed at enhancing early response and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the responders in the event of an emergency.
He said that the project cut across all the spectrums of life, such as industries, residential buildings and anywhere there were assets to be protected against fire incidents.
The managing director, who traced the background of the concept of integrating life safety systems into the oil and gas industry, noted that there were gaps between the operation and other services that oil companies were supposed to render within their respective communities.
“But the point is, while they pay more attention to the operations system, less attention is given to the residential sector and even their office complex area,’’ he said.
Oladimeji recalled an incident that happened in 2003 at a Port Harcourt-based oil company, which led to the introduction of the alarm system.
“This is not limited to the federal government alone, though the federal government is responsible to the generality of Nigerians, other asset owners should equally show commitment to protecting their property,’’ he said.
The managing director said that the public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement started in 2023 under the then Minister of Interior, Mr Rauf Aregbesola.
He said that his firm was liaising with the Federal Fire Service, the project guarantor, to provide the services.
Oladimeji said that even though liaising with the federal fire service had been taking some time, his firm had been making progress in the synergy between early detection and firefighting.
He said that, having been engaged in the capacity building of the Federal Fire Service personnel for some time, his firm was now set to go into full operation.
“The PPP concession they entered was more of a revenue-driven type. We are not expecting any money from the federal government, but we are interfacing with life safety systems with asset owners,” he said.
The managing director stated that his organisation aimed to achieve two key objectives: bringing asset owners on board and providing them with comprehensive monitoring. This would enable a swifter response time in the event of any incident, thanks to the fire service.
He stated that, before this, revenue projections had been set at over N32 billion for 10 years. However, given the current situation, his firm could generate significantly more than the projected figure.
Oladimeji, an engineer, expressed regret that the government had yet to realise any benefits from the window since 2023 due to resistance from end users who did not believe they should be protected.
He said that most Nigerians still perceived the life safety system from what they had hitherto known about the federal fire system, but added that with all the infrastructure and know-how, the response to fire emergencies would now be swifter.
The expert said that his organisation had been engaging in various forms of outreach, including media campaigns and training sessions, to educate the masses on the importance of the life safety system.
“We are doing something with the Lagos Trade Fair Complex, and that is helping to spread the message to the people.
“We have trained a lot of people in Lagos, Kano, Jigawa, Akwa Ibom and Rivers. We are also trying to create a webinar where, via YouTube, people can undertake refresher training on the life safety system,’’ he said.
Oladimeji said that with this system, the response level would get faster due largely to effective communication anytime there were fire disasters.