Minister Tasks Agencies to Create Jobs for Unemployed Nigerians
James Emejo and Kasim Sumaina in Abuja
The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Amb. Mariam Yalwaji Katagum, yesterday tasked government agencies to borrow a leaf by entering into a Public Private Partnership (PPP), to create decent jobs in sufficient quantities for unemployed Nigerians.
According to the minister, the PPP is also to resolve the protracted problems of unemployment and reduce poverty, while also providing a foundation for more robust and inclusive economic growth.
Katagum made the appeal in Abuja during the Industrial Training Fund/Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) Technical Skills Development Project (TSDP) stakeholders’ dialogue forum and outstanding trainees award ceremony.
She said that despite the commendable achievements of the ITF/NECA TSDP, there is still more room and opportunities for improvement.
She maintained that the ITF/NECA Technical Skills Development Project (TSDP), has the potential to positively address some of the numerous challenges that are confronting us as a nation, including unemployment and poverty.
According to her, “across the world today, nations that have confronted and are still battling the challenges of poverty, soaring unemployment and related challenges, did so through a greater commitment to skills acquisition.
“We must do the same, as we have one of the fastest-growing populations in the world. It is with this realisation that the federal government initiated measures, to encourage agencies vested with the mandate of equipping Nigerians with employable skills, to escalate skills acquisition to all Nigerians.
“In this regard, whereas some agencies like the ITF have taken advantage of relevant government policies to train hundreds of thousands of Nigerians through various skills intervention programmes, more still needs to be done, for the rapid growth and development of the nation’s economy.”
Katagum, however, hinted that “the need for greater collaboration and synergy amongst various organisations in both the public and private sectors cannot be over emphasised.
“I, therefore, urge other agencies of government to borrow a leaf from the example set by the ITF to enter into Public Private Partnership (PPP), to ensure the achievement of their mandates.
“I believe that with PPP, we can create decent jobs in sufficient quantities, to resolve the protracted problems of unemployment and reduce poverty, while also providing a foundation for more robust and inclusive economic growth.”
Also, the Director General/Chief Executive of the ITF, Mr. Joseph N. Ari, said that the ITF-NECA TSDP is a response to the outcome of a joint survey of “Contemporary Manpower Requirement in the Nigerian Economy” that was carried out by the ITF and NECA.
He said that the survey among others revealed skills mismatches and drastic skills shortages in many sectors of the economy leading to underemployment, unemployment and poverty.
He further explained that the project was, therefore, conceived with the primary objective of promoting the availability of manpower with appropriate Technical and Vocational Skills to meet identified needs of industries and the country.
“The TSDP is implemented in conjunction with participating organisations (PO), which are NECA member companies, ITF Industrial Skills Training Centres and other select organisations.
“Also involved are 10 selected federal and state technical colleges from all the six geo-political zones and the FCT that were upgraded and supplied with modern training equipment and tools.
“It is equally noteworthy that the TSDP also renovated training workshops for six technical colleges while also donating modern state-of-the-art equipment and tools to other participating organisations, thereby expanding their capacity to conduct skills training.
Speaking on “Apprenticeship and Traineeship: A Tool for Skills and Knowledge Transfer for National Development,” the Director General of NECA, Mr. Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, said that according to the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) “World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends in 2022,” the global unemployment rate is currently projected at 207 million in 2022 surpassing its 2019 level by 21million.
“Thus, the jobs crisis, with its social and economic implications, is far from over. More specifically, the increasing rate of local and global youth unemployment and underemployment puts not only the developing economies at risk, it also creates a new dynamic for developed economies in the context of increasing migration and pressure on socio-economic and developmental infrastructures.
“Nigeria is arguably the largest economy in Africa. With a population of about 218 million people, our country has a significant potential and a critical role to play in economic revival of the African continent.
“A cursory look at the Nigerian economy showed a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of about $440.78 billion as at 2021, according to the World Bank data,” he said.
