Hosting the Directory of Accredited Training Institutions in Nigeria

The idea of hosting the directory of accredited training institutions in Nigeria on the Nigerian Seminars and Trainings portal was borne out of a strong sense of responsibility, and an avowed commitment to protect the training public against the antics of quacks, and ensure that the training received by trainees in Nigeria is at par with internationally accepted best practice. It is premised on the conviction that the only way to prevent quackery is to ensure that the buyer is not only aware that the original exists, but also knows where and how to get it without let or hindrance.

Before I go further, kindly permit me to introduce our company. Kaiste Ventures Limited, the publishers of the Nigerian seminars and trainings portal, is a consulting and web publishing outfit. We are a web publishing company with a difference because while other web publishing companies focus on what sells, we focus on what works believing that what works, will ultimately sell.  Our vision is to use the opportunity provided by the internet to confront the age-long nightmare Nigerian researchers, students, human resource practitioners, and professionals in all walks of life are exposed to when in need of basic information; working towards changing the cultural tendency in this part of the world to conceal information even when such concealment runs contrary to our common good.

In this quest, and because of the pivotal role knowledge plays in elevating the lives of people and giving them the opportunity to be all that they can be, the training industry was the first to catch our attention. We realized that the training industry, like any other industry in Nigeria, has information gaps that can be bridged by collating, sorting, and uploading such information on a website where it can be accessed by anybody that has need for it.

From day one, we recognized that the zeal to pursue our mission must be attended to with an equal weight of responsibility. The responsibility to ensure that we do not create a situation that exposes the intended audiences to avoidable dangers or loss. The questions we sought to provide answers to include the following:

• Why isn’t there a portal where every human resource / training manager can go to and find training for all levels of staff?
•  Why isn’t there a place where intending trainees can go to and find the training they need and make informed choices without undue influence by interested parties?
• Why it is that many planned training programmes fail due to lack of attendance when in fact there are people who would have given anything to be in attendance?
• How can we create a platform that provides opportunities for training providers to showcase their training?
• How can we do all these without exposing all stake-holders to avoidable risks?

These and many more were the questions the Nigerian seminars and trainings portal was set up to provide answers to. Our website, Nigerian seminars and trainings provides free, easy, up-to-date and by-the-click access to information on upcoming training, seminars, workshops, management and professional short courses and conferences to intending trainees / conference attendees in the comfort of their living rooms/offices anywhere in Nigeria, Africa, Asia, North/South America, Europe and Oceania. We also provide information and access to training providers, venue providers, training equipment suppliers and other stake-holders in the training industry.

Uploading training businesses and training programmes on the website is free and we currently have over twenty five thousand active training programmes available on the website right now.

We started the work on the website a little over five years ago (August 2010 to date). During this period, we have connected over a million prospective trainees to the six hundred and twenty four training providers listed on our website through emails, telephones and direct website visits. We have also assisted thousands of prospective trainees to find the training of their choices through our trainee assistance window. Thankfully, throughout this period, we did not experience any unfortunate incidence.

However, according to Peter Singer "If it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, then we ought, morally, to do it". Therefore, as our popularity grew, coupled with the news making the rounds about the atrocities being perpetrated on some websites against unsuspecting members of the public, the need for us to act proactively to protect our subscribers and website visitors made us to seek institutional protection. And, as far as the training industry in Nigeria is concerned, only the Centre for Management Development (CMD) can provide such assurance.

We approached CMD with our request and it was welcomed with open arms. The list of CMD accredited Training institutions and Firms in Nigeria was released to us and this marked the beginning of “hosting the directory of accredited training institutions in nigeria” on our website.  

The updating and uploading process is on-going and we’d like to us this opportunity to encourage all accredited training providers that we have approached to log into our portal to verify their information. To create a clear distinction between accredited and non-accredited training provider, all accredited training firms and institutions have been provided with an accreditation seal to let the training buyer know the status of the training provider.

Benefits of being in the Directory of Accredited Training Institutions in Nigeria

1. It makes the search for accredited training providers easy for all intending trainees both locally and internationally.
2. It provides a reference point for confirming the “accreditation status” of training provider
3. It instils confidence in training buyers by providing them with the institutional assurance that the CMD  accreditation provides
4. Being on Nigerian seminars and trainings portal exposes the business and training courses of the accredited providers to a global audience of trainees and partnership opportunities with other business around the world.
5. Last, but definitely not the least, accredited training providers can now sell and receive payment for their training directly on the Nigerian seminars and training portal by subscribing (free) to the Web Pay aggregator from Interswitch which we have just launched.

We are working on so many other ways to make your being on the list more rewarding. We will keep you informed of these efforts to you as soon as they are released.

Getting the best out of your being in the directory

• Always keep your information up-to-date
• Check your emails regularly
• Create a contact us and other call-to-action buttons on your website and test them regularly ensure it is working – most visitors click to visit training provider’s websites only to find themselves lost.
• Treat all enquiries with all seriousness – if it is just a phone number you got, follow it up, help the prospect clarify his needs
• Once you are subscribed to the payment platform, create a link back to your courses on Nigerian seminars and trainings from your website by using the code we have provided in your user dashboard.

Thank you and God Bless

Briefing delivered by Teriba Olukayode A. (MD/CEO, Kaiste Ventures Limited) at the 16th CMD Annual Trainers Forum